Budget 2025: Injection of GH₵1.5 Billion into Nkokɔ Nketenkete project is meant to transform Agric in Ghana – Kwakye Ofosu

The Minister of State for Government Communications, Felix Kwakye Ofosu, has disclosed that the Nkokɔ Nketenkete project is a key initiative under the John Dramani Mahama’s government’s Agriculture for Economy Transformation Agenda.

Speaking on JoyNews Roundtable on the 2025 budget on Wednesday, March 12, which was monitored by Elvisanokyenews.net, the Minister stated that as part of the initiative, the government is introducing multiple programs, including the Feed Ghana Program, the Ghana Greens Development Project, and the Vegetable Development Project.

According to him, the project is designed to revitalize Ghana’s agriculture sector, ensuring sustainable growth and improved productivity.

“A program that we call the agriculture or economic transformation agenda, which involves a swathe of activities aimed at boosting agriculture. If you go under that program, there’s what we call the Feed Ghana program, there’s the Ghana Greens Development Projects, there’s the Vegetable Developments Projects and then Nkokɔ Nketenkete, which essentially is what we call the Poultry Farm to the Table project, essentially aimed at bolstering the poultry sector, which incidentally, as we speak, has collapsed.” He stated

Felix Kwakye Ofosu revealed that although the initial focus of the Agriculture for Economy Transformation Agenda is on poultry, the initiative will also support farmers engaged in grain production, vegetable farming, rice cultivation, and tuber farming.

He stated that to achieve the aim of the program, the government has committed a substantial investment of GH₵1.5 billion to the program.

“Now, it is the case that we are starting with poultry but we are aware that there are many other things that can be done within the framework of animal husbandry, within the framework of snail rearing, within the framework of other things that can be done in that sector but it is part of a comprehensive program. So no, it is not just about having chicks giving you to go and raise in order to build a poultry farm on your own. We are going to help farmers who grow vegetables, those who are into grains, soya beans, and what have you, those who grow rice, those who grow tubers, yam, cassava.

”It’s a comprehensive program that involves a lot of activities and we’ve devoted GHC1.5 billion for doing so. Some have raised the issue about whether or not this is adequate, but for a start, one would have wanted a situation where a lot more money is devoted to it but given the state of the economy and the resource constraint that we have, government has put in this money in the belief that if we start this way, we will continue and show consistency, we are going to get to a situation where the industry grows and you have a situation where those who have benefited initially, grow their capital in order to be able to reinvest.” He disclosed

Mr Ofosu also acknowledged concerns about whether GH₵1.5 billion would be sufficient but stated that this is just the beginning.

He noted that as the economy grows and more resources become available, the government will increase funding to expand agricultural opportunities and create jobs

“Others who may have some capital and may be wondering where they need to invest it, may also come in to invest because it is a creative venture, but eventually, as the economy expands, as more money becomes available to government, we are going to increase the allocations to ensure that as many of our people as possible are able to venture into agriculture, which we believe is one of the ways that we can create jobs, especially in a situation where unemployment remains one of the biggest problems that we have, so in a nutshell, it is not just about Nkokɔ Nketenkete, it’s about a broad range of activity within the agriculture sector.” He said.

Source: Elvisanokyenews.net