The government of Ghana has received an additional 10 million Euros from the European Union (EU) to support the most vulnerable populations facing escalating global food insecurity crisis exacerbated by Russia’s unprovoked and unjustified invasion of Ukraine.
Mr. Pieter Smidt Van Gelder, the Deputy Head of the European Union Mission to Ghana, announcing the new Special Measure in Accra said, “These new funds will support families to grow crops, generate income and improve food availability on local markets.”
Mr Gelder, who presented the dummy cheque to the Ministries of Finance and Food and Agriculture stated that the EU support would also make Ghanaian farmers more resilient to crisis by promoting sustainable food production and strengthening integration into national and regional food value chains. He indicated that the allocation would support the sustainable development of a number of agribusiness value chains, including shea, soybean, beekeeping, and vegetables.
The Deputy Head of the EU Mission averred that the fund would complement efforts by the Ghanaian government to mitigate further increases in poverty, hunger, and malnutrition in vulnerable areas affected by high prices of food, fertilizer, and fuel. He added that the current 10 million euro allocation to Ghana shows the commitment of the EU and Member States Team Europe approach to mobilizing political, policy and financial means to safeguard food security, while transitioning to more resilient food systems.
Mr Gelder noted that the food security situation is a very serious concern and that is why the EU has allocated 600 million euro to countries mainly in Africa to finance humanitarian food aid and food production and to strengthen local food production systems. He indicated that the support would help 19 countries to cope with the consequences of Russia’s war of aggression against Ukraine, notably the current food security and related economic shock.
“Of this envelope, the EU is allocating the 10 Million euro to Ghana,” Mr Gelder said. He added that the new funding comes on top of the EU’s 203 million euro joint programming.
The Fund to Strengthen Ongoing Projects
The Deputy Head of EU Mission stated that the extra funding announced today would strengthen the ongoing programme as well as the EU’s upcoming support to the agriculture sector in Ghana.
Mrs Abena Osei-Asare, a Deputy Minister for Finance, on her part, said “We as a country have been faced with a number of challenges in recent times. The COVID-19 pandemic and lately Russia – Ukraine war have particularly had worrying effects on Ghana’s economy”.
Mrs Abena Osei-Asare noted that the conflict has resulted in rapid increase in the prices of food, fuel and fertilizer, with its attendant consequences on the country’s foreign exchange reserves used to purchase commodities imported for public consumption as well as inputs for industries. She added that food inflation continued to contribute highly to overall inflation with Ghana’s inflation for September 2022 at 37.2 per cent with food inflation contributing largely at 37.8 per cent.
The Deputy Minister for Finance noted that the support would focus on the Northern part of Ghana as a more economically sustainable and inclusive food systems, reinforced environmental sustainability of food systems, enhanced social sustainability and gender responsiveness of food systems (incl. Food and nutrition security) and improved governance and institutional sustainability of food systems.
Mrs Abena Osei-Asare observed that the EU has been a strategic partner of Ghana over the years and had supported the country in the areas of infrastructure development, good governance, agriculture, and public financial management.
“The flexibility exhibited in the provision of €86.5 million to Ghana as Emergency Budget Support during the peak of the COVID-19 pandemic is one that cannot be forgotten.”
Mrs Abena Osei-Asare
The Deputy Minister for Finance stated that the action is part of a larger support aimed at mitigating the effects of food crisis in vulnerable Member States and regions of the Organisation of African, Caribbean and Pacific States (OACPS), occasioned by the Russia Ukraine war.
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