Set up a committee to enhance rice production – Economist to government

George Domfeh, a development economist, has urged government to place primary focus on rice production to mitigate the need for rice imports.

The University of Ghana lecturer urged government, to as a matter of urgency, set up a committee for rice production in the country.

According to him, the country imports $1.2 billion worth of rice annually and this can be mitigated should government concentrate on the local production of rice.

While praising government's intention to reduce rice imports, the development economist suggested that government should set up a committee that would include players in the rice industry's value chain and discuss how to fully implement the ban on rice importation plan.

“Ghana imports $1.2 billion worth of rice annually. This can be reduced drastically if we concentrate on the local production of rice," he stressed.

He continued, “…the government must set up a rice committee to help local rice production. Importers of rice, farmers and political parties must be part of this committee to look at ways to grow rice locally...this will include varieties for production, processing, marketing and final consumption,” he said.

The Development Economist added that the committee will monitor and involve stakeholders in the rice business to make sure there were no lapses as local rice starts to take a larger share of the market.

He made this call at an economic forum organized by the Danquah Institute in Accra, according to Graphic Online.

In addition to that, he also stated that when that was done, not only would it curb the rapid fall of the cedi but also create jobs for Ghanaians who would earn more and pay taxes for economic growth and development.

“We have to manage our economy well by simply paying attention to some of the key sectors that drive economic growth," he said.

He finally added that raw materials from agriculture should be turned into finished goods through manufacturing.