Mr. Enoch Vukey, an agricultural economist, has disclosed that Ghana should not blame Russia for its agro-crisis because Russia is a sovereign country far away from Ghana.
This he said in an interview with the Vaultz Media after the Russian government refuted any blame for the current challenges facing Ghana’s economy. For the past two months, the government of Ghana has been blaming the majority of Ghana’s economic crisis on the Russia-Ukraine war.
Mr. Enock Vukey mentioned that it is an ignominy to blame the Russian Government for the skyrocketing fuel prices and agro-inputs in Ghana.
“No one should blame Russia. Let us blame ourselves. Russia is a sovereign country far away from Ghana. We have depended too much on foreign powers for everything in our country. It is time we do something on our own to sustain our agricultural sector. Our leaders should be responsible for the current happenings and stop blaming it on the Russia-Ukraine war. The government should come out clean with the exact happenings on the ground and stop falsifying figures about the agriculture sector.”
Russian Embassy Ghana
Adding to the Contribution, Mr. Yalley Kinglsey, CEO of KingMade Lemonade, mentioned that the Government of Ghana has been singing the name of Russia for almost all of the economic crisis it faces and that is very wrong.
In addressing the nation at the beginning of April, Vice President Dr. Bawumia said that aside from the Covid-19 pandemic, the Russia-Ukraine has adversely affected the Ghanaian economy. He noted that Russia and Ukraine together account for 30% of global wheat exports; the longer the conflict ensues, the more significant the disruption to global food supplies. The conflict is also likely to slow down global growth.
As such, the Russian embassy issued a disclaimer this month after seeing numerous articles accusing it of being behind the negative trends in the agricultural markets, the gloomy prospects in terms of access to food, and huge losses for farmers.
Agro-Crisis not a result of happenings within last two months
According to the Russian Embassy in Ghana in the disclaimer issued, the current agro-hardship in Ghana results from high demand and rising prices of food, raw materials, and transportation services as part of post-Covid-19 recovery. It argued that the current condition in the agricultural space is not a result of happenings within the last two months but due to a steady trend of happenings on the global stage in the previous two years.
“The current situation in the food markets is not a result of two months of this year, but a steady trend of at least two years. Food prices started rising in mid-2020 and reached an all-time high in February 2022. This is a real market shock caused by high demand and rising prices on food, raw materials, and transportation services, including freight, in the post-Covid recovery period,” the Embassy noted.
The Russian government has called on the Government of Ghana to view the current situation through the lens of its vital national interest, adding that all stakeholders should voice their firm position by lifting the unilateral coercive measures to downgrade the tensions around transportation-related, logistical and financial aspects and ensure unimpeded deliveries and reverse the economics back to seeking stability of global agricultural, energy and financial markets.
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