We want to end the GH₵4 billion annual tomato import from Burkina Faso - Eric Opoku
The Ministry of Food and Agriculture has targeted to end tomato imports from Burkina Faso estimated at GH₵4 billion annually with the launch of the Feed Ghana programme.
The government is pursuing this goal, as stated by Eric Opoku, Minister of Food and Agriculture, through a comprehensive agricultural program that also includes brand-new irrigation projects, a soya processing plant, and a decentralized buffer stock system. Mr. Opoku stated in an interview with Citi FM on Monday, April 14, 2025, that the measures are a part of the Agriculture for Economic Transformation Agenda, which the government launched over the weekend. “We spend GH4 billion annually on tomatoes imported from Burkina Faso. If Burkina Faso is able to produce tomatoes, why is it that we cannot do it here in Ghana, in spite of the fertile soil that we have and all the agricultural endowment,” Mr Opoku questioned.
He said that tomatoes, peppers, and onions would be the focus of a new project to grow vegetables called the "Eurybia" project. Our annual import of onion from Niger is estimated to be around GH240 million. Additionally, the importation of pepper costs us close to GH3 billion, Mr. Opoku stated. He added that the government is working with a vegetable processing company to help absorb produce from local farmers.
According to the minister, eight regions have been selected for the first phase of an irrigation development plan under the “Irrigation for Wealth Creation” programme. This phase will cover 10,000 hectares of land.
Mr Opoku also announced a partnership between the Ministry of Food and Agriculture and a private investor to establish a soya bean processing plant in the northern part of the country. The government will take a 40 percent stake in the facility.
Mr. Opoku stated that the Ghana National Buffer Stock Company has been reorganized and its operations have been decentralized to regional offices to assist with post-harvest losses and enhance market access. We have assembled a team. The policy document was generated, and we have invited AGRA to be part of it to finalise everything for us.
The agriculture transformation plan also includes the establishment of 50 Farmer Service Centres across selected farming districts.
The first of these will be sited in the Atebubu-Amantin District, which the ministry has identified as one of the country’s leading food-producing areas.
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