Akomea blames successive govts for food problems

The Deputy Communications Director of the opposition New Patriotic Party, Nana Akomea, has bemoaned successive governments for their failure to implement a coherent policy on agriculture to move the country from subsistence farming to a commercial one with emphasis on income generation.

In an interview on Xfm¹s Big Bite morning show, the NPP Communications Director who doubles as the MP for Okaikoi South wondered why with 60% of the population engaged in food farming, the country still depended on foreign aid while with just 5% of the population engaging in food farming, certain foreign countries tend to be self-sufficient; producing enough food crops to support their economies.

He also decried government's commitment to boosting the agricultural sector with regards to food production saying government has not done enough to transform food farming from its peasant stage into a "Cash activity" which could attract both the old and the youth to invest their energy in the food sector.

He underlined that importation of food produce from other countries can be stifled by ensuring that the prices of food are guaranteed with farmers having value on what they produce. In contrast however, Nana Akomea said farmers during the bumper harvest watch their produce such as tomatoes perish due to their inability to hoard their commodities. This he said would not help cut down on the high level of importation in the country.

He believed farmers producing largely with an enhanced profit margin would portray the sector as a lucrative venture to attract investors and banks which eventually would lend loans to the farmers to support their livelihood.

A report by the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) on November 22, 2011, indicated that food security is key to the survival of every country, hence, the need for governments to incorporate it in their budget. The report titled '"The State of Food Insecurity in the World 2011² further highlighted on the significance in improving both short-term access to food and food production in the medium term in order to achieve a long-lasting boost in food security.

According to the NPP Deputy Communications Director, it is imperative for government to adopt a more refined approach to address the food crisis in the country. Nana Akomea who described the country's food crisis as "shameful² and unacceptable said it is incumbent on the government to put high premium on food farming in the economy and stimulate the farmers to produce more to meet the needs of Ghanaians and the nation at large.

He therefore pledged his party's commitment to improving the agricultural sector to the benefit of the farmers and the entire nation when given the nod in 2012.

Story by Ameyaw Adu Gyamfi/X fm 95.1/Accra/Ghana