The General Agricultural Workers’ Union (GAWU) of TUC–Ghana has used the 2025 Farmers’ Day celebration to renew its call for the establishment of a dedicated Ghana Agricultural Service (GAS) to drive long-term transformation of the sector.
In a statement signed by its General Secretary, Mr. Andrews Addoquaye Tagoe, the Union warned that Farmers’ Day risked becoming “a mere annual ceremony” unless Ghana backed celebrations with concrete, structural reforms to strengthen agricultural development.
This year’s Farmers’ Day, marked under the theme “Feed Ghana, Eat Ghana, Secure the Future,”underscored the country’s reliance on agriculture, yet GAWU argued that institutional weaknesses continue to hinder progress.
Mr. Tagoe said the proposed Ghana Agricultural Service should be a permanent, professional body responsible for policy development, extension services, research, and implementation.
Such a structure, he noted, would help consolidate the gains made so far and position agriculture firmly as a pillar of national development.
“With the great initiative in creating the Ghana Health Service for public health and the Ghana Education Service for professional teaching, we must commit to creating a professional and dedicated structure for the agriculture sector,” he said.
He stressed that while Farmers’ Day offers an important moment to honour the sacrifices of Ghana’s agricultural workforce, sectoral challenges remain persistent due to weak institutional support systems.
Although recent government initiatives, including the Presidential Initiative on Agriculture and Agribusiness (PIAA), have created new momentum, farmers continue to struggle with limited resources, inadequate extension services, and unstable policy continuity.
Mr. Tagoe described the farmer-to-extension officer ratio currently at an alarming 1:1,500 as unacceptable and far above the global benchmark of 1:500.
He urged the government to recruit more agricultural graduates to close this gap and enhance service delivery across farming communities.
He also called for the recapitalisation of COCOBOD, noting that although cocoa remains a strategically important export commodity, financial constraints continue to threaten growth in the sector.
The GAWU General Secretary further emphasised the need for stronger investment in agricultural research, particularly in horticulture, which he said holds significant potential for employment and export growth.
He urged authorities to revive the stalled plans to establish a National Horticulture Research Institute to support innovation in high-growth value chains.
Mr. Tagoe reaffirmed GAWU’s commitment to advocating for farmers, farmworkers and seafood workers across the country.
He also paid special tribute to women in agriculture, whose contributions, he said, remain undervalued despite their central role in food production and rural livelihoods.
