Ghana's agriculture & Food Industry

Ghana's agricultural sector is the bedrock of its economy, underpinning livelihoods, food security, and export earnings. While it faces significant challenges, ongoing efforts aim to modernize and strengthen this vital industry.

Overview of Ghana's Agricultural Industry

Agriculture in Ghana is a diverse and established economic sector, characterized predominantly by smallholder, traditional, and rain-fed farming systems. It provides employment for a substantial portion of the population and forms the base of the country's food needs. The Ministry of Food and Agriculture (MoFA) regulates and guides the sector.

Approximately 57% of Ghana's total land area of 238,539 km² is classified as "agricultural land," with about 58,000 km² (or 5.8 million hectares) currently under cultivation. A smaller portion, about 11,000 hectares, is under irrigation, highlighting the significant reliance on rainfall. About 60% of all farms in the country are less than 1.2 hectares in size, emphasizing the prevalence of small-scale farming.

Major Areas of Agriculture in Ghana

Ghana's varied climatic zones, ranging from dry savanna in the north to wet forest in the south, allow for a wide array of agricultural products. Farming systems vary across these agro-ecological zones:

• Forest Zone (e.g., Western, Eastern, Ashanti, Bono, Ahafo, Volta Regions): This zone, with heavy rainfall, is crucial for tree crops like cocoa, oil palm, coffee, rubber, and cashew. Food crops often include inter-cropped mixtures of maize, plantain, cocoyam, and cassava. The Western Region is a major producer of cocoa, rubber, and coconut.
• Northern Savanna Zone (e.g., Northern, North East, Savannah, Upper East, Upper West Regions): The largest agricultural zone, it is a primary source of the nation's supply of rice, millet, sorghum, yam, tomatoes, cattle, sheep, and goats. Mangoes, cotton, and ostrich commercial farms are also gaining ground.
• Coastal Savanna Zone (e.g., Central, Greater Accra, parts of Volta Region): This area is notable for rice, maize, cassava, vegetables, sugarcane, mangoes, and coconut cultivation, as well as livestock rearing. Sweet potato and soybean crops are also viable here, often under irrigation.
• Transitional/Middle Belt: Characterized by mixed or sole cropping of maize, legumes, cocoyam, or yam, with tobacco and cotton being predominant cash crops.

Major Produce Items and Volumes

Ghana is a significant global producer of several key agricultural commodities:

• Cassava: Ghana is the world's fourth-largest producer, with approximately 20.8 million tonnes in 2020. An estimated 1 million hectares are used for cassava production, involving about 70% of Ghanaian farmers.
• Yam: Ghana is the second-largest producer globally, after Nigeria, producing around 7.8 million tonnes in 2020.
• Plantain: Ghana ranks as the second-largest producer worldwide, just behind Congo, with about 4.1 million tonnes.
• Cocoa: Ghana is the world's second-largest producer of cocoa, after Côte d'Ivoire. In 2017, it brought in $1,914 per metric ton, with production slated to exceed the national average supply by 97,500 metric tons.¹¹ Cocoa is Ghana's principal agricultural export, providing livelihoods for over half a million farmers.
• Oil Palm: Approximately 2.6 million tonnes were produced in 2020, making Ghana the eighth-largest producer.
• Maize: Around 2.3 million tonnes were produced in 2020.
• Taro (Cocoyam): Ghana is the fourth-largest producer globally, with 1.4 million tonnes.
• Rice: Production was around 769 thousand tonnes in 2020, though Ghana remains a significant importer.
• Pineapple: Ghana is the second-largest exporter of pineapples in Africa.
• Other crops: Oranges, sweet potato, groundnuts, natural rubber, and tobacco are also produced in smaller quantities.

Meat and Livestock:

Livestock production is a major feature, contributing about 7% of agricultural GDP. While poultry predominates in the south, cattle production is concentrated in the Savannah zones. Domestic meat production is relatively low, meeting only about 30% of the national animal protein requirements. In 2000, total domestic meat production was 66,283 metric tons, with poultry contributing about 21%, beef 27%, mutton 18%, and goat and pig meat around 17% each. The country relies on imports to cover the shortfall.

Internal Consumption and Exports

Ghana's agriculture sector provides over 90% of the food needs of the country. This demonstrates a high degree of self-sufficiency in staple foods, although specific imports like rice (55% of rice consumed) and poultry are substantial to meet local demand.

Exports: While agricultural products contribute over 40% of export earnings, gold and crude petroleum typically dominate Ghana's overall export profile. In 2023, Ghana's top exports included Gold ($15.6B), Crude Petroleum ($5.13B), and Cocoa Beans ($1.09B), with Cocoa Paste also being a significant agricultural export.

Excess Produce, Food Waste, and Donating to Communities

While specific data on the volume of "excess produce" is not readily available, food waste is a concern, particularly post-harvest losses. Due to the predominance of smallholder farming and challenges in infrastructure (storage, transportation), significant portions of harvests can be lost before reaching markets or consumers.

Donating Excess to Local Communities: While formal food banks in the Western sense might be less prevalent, community-level sharing and informal networks play a crucial role in distributing surplus food. Initiatives often focus on improving storage and processing to reduce losses and extend shelf life. There's a growing awareness and effort by various organizations, including NGOs and some private sector players, to address food loss and waste through better supply chain management, education, and direct distribution to vulnerable communities.

Annual Revenue and Economic Importance

The agricultural sector accounts for approximately 19-20% of Ghana's Gross Domestic Product (GDP) and over 40% of export earnings. While its share of GDP has seen some fluctuations, it remains a cornerstone of the Ghanaian economy, providing livelihoods for the majority of the country's poorest households. Sustained agricultural growth is seen as crucial for the economy's overall resilience and for helping Ghana transition beyond its lower middle-income status.

Number of People Employed and Living Conditions of Farm Workers

Agriculture remains the largest employer of the economically active population in Ghana, engaging around 52% of the labor force, with approximately 39% of farm laborers being women. This translates to hundreds of thousands, if not millions, of people directly involved in farming.

Living Conditions of Farm Workers: The majority are smallholder farmers, and their living conditions are often tied to the success of their harvests and prevailing market prices. Challenges include:

• Rain-fed dependency: Heavy reliance on seasonal rains makes them vulnerable to climate shocks like droughts.
• Low yields: Characterized by low yields for both staple and cash crops, impacting income.
• Limited access to resources: Many smallholder farmers lack capital for modern agricultural systems, quality inputs (fertilizers, improved seeds), and irrigation.
• Inadequate infrastructure: Poor road networks, storage facilities, and market access can lead to post-harvest losses and lower farm gate prices.
• Poverty: The majority of households relying on agriculture often face poverty, with limited access to quality education, healthcare, and other social amenities.
• Migration: Climate change impacts and limited opportunities in rural areas can lead to rural-urban migration, especially among youth.

Government Programs for Farmers and the Industry

The Ghanaian government recognizes the importance of agriculture and has implemented various programs to support farmers and modernize the sector.

• Planting for Food and Jobs (PFJ): A flagship initiative launched in 2017, aiming to increase food security, create jobs, and promote export agriculture. It encompasses modules like "Rearing for Food and Jobs" to boost livestock production. This program focuses on input subsidies (seeds, fertilizers), extension services, and market access.
• One Village One Dam (1V1D): This initiative focuses on constructing small earth dams and dugouts, particularly in the northern regions, to provide water for irrigation and dry-season farming, thus mitigating the impact of drought. As of 2021, over 500 such dams had been completed.
• One District One Warehouse: Aimed at addressing post-harvest losses by constructing warehouses with a capacity of 1,000 metric tonnes in each district. As of September 2021, 23 out of 30 targeted warehouses were completed.
• Modernizing Agriculture in Ghana (MAG) Programme: Focuses on improving agricultural productivity and value chain development.
• Savannah Agricultural Value Chain Development Program (SADP): Aims to develop specific value chains in the northern savannah.
• Investment in Infrastructure: Prioritizing public investments in infrastructure, especially in high agricultural potential areas.
• Regulatory Reforms: Efforts to reduce regulatory burdens on agricultural inputs like fertilizers to improve their use and farmer returns.
• Diversification: Promoting diversification into high-value crops and livestock products to increase food security and generate foreign exchange.

Dependence on Other Countries for Food

Despite its strong agricultural base, Ghana exhibits a notable dependence on imports for certain food items. It is a net importer of basic foods, including rice, poultry, sugar, and vegetable oils. For instance, Ghana imports 1.3 million tonnes of paddy rice annually, compared to 1 million tonnes produced locally. In 2023, rice imports alone amounted to $342 million. This reliance on imports makes the country vulnerable to global price fluctuations and supply chain disruptions. The government's Ghana Food and Agriculture Delivery Compact aims to mobilize investments to reduce this self-sufficiency gap, especially for rice, soybeans, and poultry value chains.

In conclusion, Ghana's agricultural industry is central to its economic stability and the well-being of its population. While it boasts impressive production volumes for many staple crops and plays a crucial role in exports, challenges like climate change (droughts), low productivity, and a reliance on imports for certain food items necessitate continued government intervention and investment to foster a more resilient and prosperous agricultural future.