The Minister for Food and Agriculture, Hon. Eric Opoku, has highlighted the significant challenges facing Ghana, including high food imports, escalating food prices, and the increasing poverty affecting many citizens.
He recognized that, despite these difficulties, the nation possesses the necessary knowledge and technical expertise to overcome them.
Hon. Opoku emphasized that addressing these challenges cannot be achieved in isolation, stressing the importance of collective support.
His role, he explained, is to mobilize available resources to ensure the successful implementation of the country’s agricultural agenda.
He further stated that the overarching objective is to harness agriculture as a key driver of economic transformation and growth.
Accordingly, Hon. Opoku appealed to all stakeholders to provide their support, asserting that the political phase has concluded, and the focus must now be on the collective goal of advancing agriculture for the nation’s development.
“We may belong to a different political parties [however], at the end of the day, we are talking about Ghana and how to govern our country. So let’s all hang our political jackets, mobilize all that we have, and then ensure that we succeed.
“Because this is the only country we have. If you are still in the political mood and you think that everything is politics, then you are an obstacle. An obstacle must be replaced to allow a new flow of development”.
Hon. Eric Opoku
He further emphasized that the political divisions between the NDC and NPP, which characterized the recent elections, are now behind and should not influence the work of the ministry.
Accordingly, Hon. Opoku called for a collective focus to contribute to the nation’s development, highlighting that Ghana is richly endowed with immense potential for agricultural progress.
Agriculture, he noted, has the power to liberate the people from the grasp of agro-poverty, noting, however, that achieving this will require unity and collaboration.
As such, he stressed that this will necessitate moving away from traditional practices to foster meaningful and transformative change.
Financial Strain from Monument Spending Hampers Development
Furthermore, Hon. Eric Opoku expressed concern over the significant financial burden of monuments, noting that a substantial portion of the country’s tax revenue is being allocated to them.
He pointed out that approximately 70% of total tax revenue is being spent on monuments alone. As a result, after covering essential expenses such as salaries, there is little to no funding left for crucial areas like capital development.
He emphasized that this financial strain is hindering the nation’s ability to invest in the development needed to drive the country’s progress.
According to him, the country has the potential to develop, but the current allocation of resources is limiting growth and advancement in other vital sectors.
“And so once we are taking the chunk of the money, our output must commensurate proportionally to the amount of money that we are earning.
“And so I urge all of you to bring your knowledge, whatever you have to the table, for us to make significant changes and ensure that agriculture assumes its rightful position in the development of our nation”.
Hon. Eric Opoku
Hon. Opoku further emphasized that the mindset, which assumes that as a minister one must handle everything single-handedly and take full responsibility for all outcomes, reflects poor leadership.
He pointed out that such an approach is not only unsustainable but also detrimental to the success of any initiative.
According to Opoku, effective leadership thrives on teamwork, where roles are shared, and everyone works together toward a common goal.
As such, He emphasized that the success or failure of the ministry will be determined by both the Minister’s leadership and the contributions of its staff. “I’m here to let you know that we are going to work together”.
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