Ato Forson touts commercial agriculture as key to tackling youth unemployment

Finance Minister Dr Cassiel Ato Forson has described commercial agriculture as a major opportunity for tackling youth unemployment, saying large-scale farming could generate significant jobs while reducing Ghana's reliance on imported food.

He said developing the sector and expanding domestic production of food commodities would create employment opportunities across the agricultural value chain and strengthen the local economy.

Dr Forson said government assessments had identified agriculture as one of the sectors with the capacity to employ a substantial proportion of the country's population in an interview with Citi FM on Friday, November 13.

He said this would, however, require a deliberate shift from small-scale subsistence farming towards commercial agriculture capable of supporting large-scale production.

“If there is one sector that can create jobs on a large scale, it is agriculture. In fact, the diagnostics we conducted identified agriculture as a sector capable of employing the majority of our people. I mean commercial agriculture. We need to commercialise agriculture, not peasant agriculture,” he said.

The Finance Minister identified rice, poultry, palm oil and sugar among the commodities Ghana imports, arguing that expanding local production and processing could open up considerable employment opportunities.

He explained that the benefits would go beyond farming, with opportunities in processing, storage, transportation and other related activities creating jobs at different stages of the supply chain.

“The chain alone, if you are able to fix it, will create so much jobs,” he added.

As an example of the potential of agricultural investment, Dr Forson pointed to the proposed Pwalugu Dam project, which is expected to provide irrigation for 25,000 hectares of farmland.

The project is expected to support the development of a large-scale vegetable production enclave, particularly for tomatoes and onions.

He said increasing local production of the two commodities would reduce Ghana's dependence on supplies from Burkina Faso, where traders currently travel to purchase them.

The project is also expected to generate 70 megawatts of electricity to support industrial activities in the area.

Dr Forson said the planned production enclave would create additional opportunities in food processing and preservation, enabling businesses to add value to agricultural produce and expand employment beyond primary production.

He questioned why unemployment among young people should remain a major challenge when Ghana has vast arable land, water resources and favourable climatic conditions to support agricultural development.

He maintained that investing in commercial farming and developing the agricultural value chain could provide a significant source of employment, strengthen local industries and reduce the country's dependence on imported food.