Manifesto Brief of the day: A focus on Agriculture

Penplusbytes’ Manifesto Brief for November 15: A Focus on Agriculture

NDC- Provide support for the research institutions, etc.

Agriculture has been the lead sector for overall growth and transformation in many countries. Critical in this agenda is innovation which remains one of the major challenges affecting agricultural modernization in Ghana. The promise to provide support to research institutions such as the Council for Scientific and Industrial Research, the foremost national science and technology institution in Ghana to implement government policies on scientific research and development is very laudable.

NPP- facilitate the provision of community owned and managed small-scale irrigation facilities, etc.

A single most critical challenge facing agriculture is the issue of climate change that remains the biggest threat to food crop production, particularly in Ghana. There is therefore the need for urgent and concerted efforts to address this threat, and supporting farmers with  irrigation schemes as promised by the NPP is certainly the way to go for all year round agricultural production.

CPP- Increase state resource allocation to farmers and fishermen, etc.

Among the serious challenges facing agriculture is the lack of critical inputs. The non-availability of these inputs in adequate quantity remains a big challenge that impacts negatively on the livelihoods of most Africa’s farmers. With the African population expected to grow from 1.1 billion to an estimated 2 billion by 2050, the promise by the CPP to increase state resource allocation, such as subsidized inputs, technical assistance and price support to farmers and fishermen would be critical for increased food production for Ghana’s population.

This Manifesto brief is made possible with funding from American Embassy, NED, INDIGO Trust & GOGIG