Akufo-Addo’s claims of no food shortage in 2020 contested

In 2020, there was a shortage of almost every food commodity in Ghana, an official of the Peasant Farmers Association of Ghana (PFAG) has said, contesting President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo on his claims that Ghana did not suffer any food shortage last year.

In his address on the state of the nation last Tuesday, President Akufo-Addo told members of the Eighth Parliament that as a result of the prudent measures rolled out in the agriculture sector in his first term, there was resilience in the provision of food.

“I am happy to inform the House that during this period of the pandemic, we have experienced no food shortages in this country,” the president told Parliament on Tuesday, March 9.

But speaking on the pre-budget discussions on TV3 on Friday, March 12, Charles Nyaaba, who is the Head of Programmes and Advocacy at PFAG, said they were surprised when the president made the statement on the floor of Parliament.

“For us, we think that the president was misfed with information, other than that he wouldn’t have come to say that,” he told presenter Alfred Ocansey.

He said there is abundant evidence among farmers that Ghana suffered in food supply last year contrary to what the president said.

Mr Nyaaba said even poultry farmers could attest to the fact that maize feeds were in short supply while “as we speak, we cannot even boast of 1,000 tonnes of Sorghum”.

He stressed: “As we speak now, there is a shortage of most of the cereals in this country.”