Former minister of Finance, Dr. Kwabena Duffuor says the National Democratic Congress (NDC) flag bearer will revamp Ghana’s agriculture sector.
Speaking in an interview on Ultimate FM with Julius Caesar, Dr. Duffuor raised concerns about the implementation of the Planting for Food and Job initiative.
According to him, most farmers have difficulty with modern farming techniques, “small-scale farmers, have difficulty in learning the techniques in modern farming.”
Dr. Duffour highlighted the gap in integrating public-private sector involvement and commercial farming.
“If we have combined what they did with small-scale farming, we would have gained what we refer to as productivity growth,” he said.
He further stated that despite the good intentions of the Planting for Food and Job, the investment did not yield the expected outcomes.
“Inputs must lead to higher output. It has been some sound management, but if the outputs were nothing to write home about, then it’s a question,” Dr. Duffuor stated.
Dr. Duffuor assured the public that the NDC government would make a shift in strategy under future administrations.
“The NDC government’s future will try to add commercial farming through private-public partnerships,”
He emphasized that the future NDC government will correct past missteps to ensure that substantial investments lead to tangible benefits for farmers and the economy.
“The farmers who have gone through all the challenges with low incomes all through will begin to smile,” he added.