Accra, April 23,GNA – The Government is constructing 80 warehouses with the capacity to store a total of 80,000 metric tonnes(MT) of food, by June, towards ensuring national food security.
Speaking at a media briefing to update the public on the food security situation, Dr Owusu Afriyie Akoto, the Minister of Food and Agriculture, however, said the Government’s long-term target was to construct a total of 200,000 metric tonnes capacity warehousing.
Each of the 80 warehouses would have the capacity to store up to 1,000 MT of food.
He explained that the Government would delegate the management of the 80 warehouses, upon completion, to the National Food Buffer Stock Company (NAFCO), Ghana Stock Exchange, private sector organizations and the sector Ministry for efficient management.
Dr Afriyie Akoto said since the COVID-19 outbreak in the country, the Ministry had been engaging inputs distributors, importers, development partners and Ghana Commodity Exchange to craft remedial measures to respond to the COVID-19 pandemic.
So far, he said, the government had made funding available to the NAFCO to mop up strategic food stocks to ensure food security, and also provide regular updates on food situation.
The Minister gave the assurance that the nation had adequate food stock to meet the needs of Ghanaians due to the implementation of the Planting for Food and Jobs and other modules like Planting for Export and Rural Development and Rearing for Food and Jobs.
He said the nation produced 650,000 metric tonnes of rice and three million metric tonnes of maize last year, and exported 19 different food items to the West African Sub-region.
The Minister, however, underscored the need to ramp up credit facility to players in the agriculture value chain to increase production and sustain their businesses.
Dr Afriyie Akoto refuted claims that prices of food items were still high even after the lifting of the three-week partial lockdown.
He, however, said there was slight increment in food prices on the eve of the lockdown due to panic buying prices of food but the situation had returned to normalcy after the lifting of the restriction of movements in COVID-19 hotspots areas.
Meanwhile, the International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD) has made available $20 million to Ghana to support agricultural expansion programmes following the COVID-19 pandemic.
GNA