Farmers Day: Minority expresses worry over unsold grain

The Minority in Parliament says the deepening crisis facing farmers and fishers reflects a fundamental failure of government, arguing that thousands of producers now face threats to their livelihoods as the country marks Farmers’ Day.

In a statement issued on Friday, Minority Leader Alexander Afenyo-Markin said Ghanaian farmers have been pushed into “one of the gravest moments in our modern agricultural history,” pointing to the collapse of the grain market and the severe disruptions in the fishing sector.

He noted that more than one million metric tonnes of paddy rice valued at GH¢5 billion remain unsold nationwide, despite government assurances earlier this year.

“Farmers have been left stranded, their livelihoods jeopardised, and national food security undermined,” he said.

He added that the failure of the National Food Buffer Stock Company to honour its September promise to buy maize and rice has pushed many families into desperation.

“Government promised to buy every grain. Where are you?” he said, referencing the protest placards of farmers who marched through Tamale.

The statement also criticised conditions in fishing communities, especially in the Volta Region. Afenyo-Markin said the non-supply of premix fuel has “crippled the lifeblood of countless households,” adding that boats have been forced to remain docked for weeks.

“A government that cannot ensure the reliable distribution of a basic input like premix fuel has failed in its most elementary duty,” he said.

The Minority further warned that smuggled and expired imports are eroding local markets, leaving local farmers and fishers unable to compete.

“No producer can survive when untaxed and unchecked goods flood the market,” Afenyo-Markin said. He added that the situation is worsened by illegal fishing practices and the declining enforcement of trade regulations.

He raised renewed concerns about galamsey’s impact on cocoa farming and national water bodies, citing COCOBOD’s figures on the destruction of 30,000 hectares of cocoa farms.

According to him, “illegal mining poses an existential threat to Ghana’s food security and rural economy.”

The Minority laid out a list of demands, including the immediate purchase of unsold grain, restoration of premix fuel supply, action against smuggled imports, stronger protection against illegal mining, and investment in irrigation, storage, landing sites and agro-processing.

Afenyo-Markin said the day should honour the “courage and resilience” of farmers and fishers, stressing that they “feed the nation in spite of painful betrayals.”