Ghana to get rice mills by end of 2021 to enhance rice production – Agric Ministry

• Ghana’s rice farmers have been suffering post-harvest losses

• The importation of rice is still rampant

• A number of rice mills acquired from Brazil and India are expected to address self-sufficiency issues

Government through the Ministry of Food and Agriculture has acquired some rice mills to enable rice farmers to produce in larger quantities.

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The move according to the ministry is geared towards addressing Ghana’s rice production challenges and self-sufficiency issues which has resulted in huge post-harvest losses.

Per a Citi Business News report quoting the Agriculture Ministry, the rice mills are expected to arrive in the country from Brazil and India by the end of this year.

“As at now what we are putting out is looking at the tomato value chain, looking at poultry, rice and soya. All these crops involve the use of fertilizer; they also may require the extension service delivery, the use of chemicals and other agro-inputs so this has been catered for. We are looking towards the end of this year,” the ministry said.

“We will be receiving some farm machines from India and Brazil. We are bringing in some smallholder rice mills because if you travel across the length and breadth of this country, the rice-producing areas do so much but at the end of the day they have post-harvest losses, and it is high time we add value, so we are looking at that aspect, and we are hoping that by the end of the day these machines would have arrived in the country for distribution to the rice farmers in the country,” it added.

The acquisition of the rice mills form parts of efforts by government to enhance farmers production under the second phase of the Ghana COVID-19 Alleviation and Revitalization of Enterprises Support (CARES) Obaatanpa programme which is being facilitated by the Ministry of Finance.