Professor Eric Yirenkyi Danquah, Founding Director of the West Africa Centre for Crop Improvement (WACCI), has stressed that the government’s Feed Ghana Programme (FGP) must deliver transformational change and not merely incremental improvements to the agricultural sector.
Delivering the keynote address at the Food, Agriculture, Technology and Sustainability Conference at Ho Technical University (HTU), Prof. Danquah said the FGP, designed as a flagship intervention to modernise agriculture must serve as a catalyst for bold, science-led, innovation-driven reform.
“FGP is a good start, but Ghana needs transformation, not another improvement plan,” he said. “Our greatest opportunity is to build a science-led, innovative, market-ready agricultural economy.”
Prof. Danquah warned that the success of the programme is critical for the country’s future.
“If this fails, we’re doomed for life,” he said, explaining that a successful FGP would mean Ghana feeding itself, farmers producing for markets rather than survival, youth entering agribusiness profitably, climate-resilient, data-driven agriculture, and Ghana becoming a net exporter instead of an importer.
He argued that achieving transformation requires doing things differently, including stronger investment in science, innovation and modern breeding, strengthened seed systems and breeder seed pipelines, improved agricultural financing, reliable irrigation and water management systems and use of data and digital tools for decision-making
He lamented Ghana’s slow agricultural growth, rising food imports exceeding US$2.5 billion, low yields, post-harvest losses, weak irrigation and inadequate financing.
“We need to reset Ghana,” he said. “Past plans failed because of weak execution. With weak execution, what do you expect?”
Prof. Danquah called for visionary investment in science, technology and innovation, insisting:
“The prosperity of nations is written in their budgets for research.”
He criticised the country’s dependence on imported vegetable seeds from Europe and the Middle East, saying Ghana must develop its own capacity.
He argued that policymakers who fail to invest in science and technology “should face the law” because their inaction contributes to preventable suffering.
Prof. Ibok N. Oduro, a professor of Post-Harvest Technology at KNUST, described Ghana’s food system as a story of both “progress and paradox.”
While acknowledging notable achievements, she said long-standing challenges in food security, poverty, climate change, and access to modern farming systems persist.
“We cannot continue as usual. We must innovate not only in laboratories, but in policies, practices and mindsets,” she added.
Mr. Eric Opoku, Minister of Food and Agriculture, said the insights shared at the conference align with the objectives of the FGP, which seeks to ensure food sufficiency and provide sustainable raw materials for agro-industrial development.
He assured that the government is ready to mobilise all necessary resources, stating:
“We have the brainpower, except that we are not making maximum use of the brainpower that we have.”
Mr. Emmanuel Armah-Kofi Buah, Minister for Lands and Natural Resources and Caretaker Minister of Environment, Science and Technology, said agricultural transformation cannot occur in isolation.
“It requires a coordinated ecosystem linking research, industry, students, entrepreneurs and policymakers,” he said, adding that research findings must translate into commercially viable technologies that benefit farmers and households.
Dr. Marindame Kombate of the Ghana Circular Economy Centre stressed that circularity should be central not peripheral to Ghana’s agricultural systems.
“Let us design a future where waste becomes value, innovation becomes opportunity, and Ghana leads Africa’s circular transition,” he urged.
Prof. Ben Q. Honyenuga, Vice-Chancellor of HTU, said the conference aligns with the university’s vision to be a hub of practical, sustainability-focused education.
He highlighted the university’s breakthrough research reducing the baobab plant’s gestation period from 20 to 30 years to two and a half years.
Also, Mr. James Gunu, Volta Regional Minister, assured the Vice-Chancellor of the RCC’s readiness to collaborate with the university.
