Despite its importance to food security, job creation, and rural development, Ghana’s agriculture sector continues to suffer from chronic underinvestment, both from domestic financial institutions and international investors. According to IMANI Africa, drawing from Ghana Investment Promotion Centre (GIPC) data, foreign direct investment (FDI) into agriculture averaged less than 2% of total inflows between 2018 and 2024.
In 2024 alone, the sector received just $1.5 million out of a total $617.6 million in FDI, representing only 0.24% of Ghana’s total foreign capital inflows for the year. That figure supported just three agriculture-related projects across the country. For comparison, sectors like oil and gas, manufacturing, and services continue to attract the lion’s share of both local and international investments.
This is not an isolated year. It reflects a structural pattern that has persisted for more than half a decade. IMANI’s review of GIPC reports between 2018 and 2024 confirms that agriculture consistently fails to cross even the 3% threshold of total FDI. The result is a widening financing gap in a sector that employs over 30% of Ghana’s workforce and contributes significantly to non-oil export earnings.
A Sector Left Behind — Both Locally and Internationally
But foreign investment isn’t the only concern. Domestic credit to agriculture tells a similar story. According to data from the Bank of Ghana and GIRSAL, agriculture has received less than 5% of total bank lending in recent years, a level far below what is needed to drive real transformation across the value chain. In a modernizing economy, the numbers simply don’t add up.
This is despite ongoing policy rhetoric around agriculture as a pillar for Ghana’s development. Flagship initiatives such as Planting for Food and Jobs, GIRSAL’s credit guarantee scheme, and various donor-led agri-programmes have attempted to de-risk the sector and boost financing. Yet the outcomes remain modest.
Why Investors Stay Away
There is no single explanation for this chronic underinvestment, but analysts and stakeholders cite several interlocking reasons.
First is the issue of perceived high risk. Agriculture is still heavily dependent on rainfall, with limited irrigation systems, exposing producers to weather-related shocks. Add to that land tenure uncertainty, price volatility, post-harvest losses, and pest outbreaks, and many banks and investors see agriculture as more gamble than opportunity.
Second, there is the low bankability of most actors in the sector. Smallholder farmers dominate the space, but most lack formal business records, collateral, or land titles to qualify for loans. Even mid-sized agribusinesses face difficulty scaling due to limited access to working capital or long-term financing instruments.
Third is the infrastructure gap. Poor rural roads, limited storage and cold chain facilities, and insufficient processing infrastructure make agricultural ventures harder to scale or integrate into modern value chains. All of this erodes investor confidence.
Finally, policy inconsistency doesn’t help. Shifting subsidies, unpredictable trade policies, and uncoordinated sector reforms have historically made it difficult for long-term investment planning in agriculture.
What’s at Stake?
The consequences of this funding gap are not abstract. They are visible on Ghana’s farms, markets, and import bill.
Even though Ghana grows most of its staple foods, it continues to import large volumes of rice, poultry, tomato products, cooking oil, and even onions, all products that could be competitively produced locally with the right capital and infrastructure. The country’s food import bill crossed $2 billion in recent years, a contradiction for a country with vast arable land and a strong agricultural base.
Meanwhile, farmers struggle with low yields, poor mechanization, and limited access to markets. Agribusinesses face capital bottlenecks that hinder their ability to scale, innovate, or add value. Youth, seeing few prospects in farming, continue to migrate to cities in search of work, adding pressure to urban unemployment.
Turning the Corner — or Missing the Moment?
The IMANI report argues that Ghana cannot afford to treat agriculture as an afterthought in its investment strategy. If the country is serious about industrialization, food security, and inclusive growth, agriculture must move to the center of financing policy, not just through loans, but also through blended finance, targeted guarantees, insurance tools, and value chain-driven investment models.
Encouragingly, some efforts are underway. GIRSAL has deployed credit guarantees and risk-sharing facilities with banks. Development banks like DBG have agriculture in their mandate. Private platforms are emerging to connect farmers with finance and markets, especially through agritech.
Notwithstanding these challenges, stakeholders insist the sector is far from a lost cause. With targeted incentives, strategic capital, and stronger linkages across production, processing, and distribution, agriculture can still become one of Ghana’s most investable and resilient sectors.
