Agriculture must move from donor-dependency to profitable trade-driven

Agricultural growth needs to move from donor-dependency to profitable trade-driven agriculture. That’s coming from the President Ghana Agricultural Chamber of Commerce.

Some analysts have attributed the decrease in agricultural investment, as well as a decline in the performance of the agricultural sector to low public investments. Majority of Africa’s population live in the rural areas and agriculture is the main source of such dwellers’ livelihood.

Meanwhile, access to agricultural credit is a challenge in developing countries. The agric sector investments usually come from donor agencies rather than government committing its own resources to the sector. But President Ghana Agricultural Chamber of Commerce, Philip Abayori believes agriculture in the country must not be hinged on donor funds. Agriculture plays a vital role in the national economy but it is predominantly dependent on natural rainfall.

Irrigated agriculture on a fairly limited scale is a recent phenomenon and it is necessitated largely by the seasonality and unreliability of natural rainfall, he added. Philip Abayori also says the development and management of irrigation, over the period has been characterized by difficulties notably weak database, excessive cost, environmental problems.

He is also calling on government to invest in agric irrigations rather than the sector being climate driven. “Irrigation capacity utilisation on existing schemes is very low hence the need for a broad policy objectives to promote irrigation development and management”.