The General Agricultural Workers Union (GAWU) has praised President John Dramani Mahama’s announcement of a full waiver on import duties for agro-processing machinery, calling it a transformative step toward revitalizing Ghana’s agricultural sector and accelerating agribusiness growth.
The announcement, made during the National Agribusiness Dialogue signals a renewed push by government to remove structural bottlenecks that have long hindered investment in local agro-processing and value addition. For agribusinesses struggling with high operational costs, the duty waiver offers a lifeline.
“This is a policy we’ve long advocated for,” said Andrews Addoquaye Tagoe, General Secretary of GAWU, “It shows that someone is listening. We’ve been raising this issue for years. The president’s commitment reflects a clear response to our concerns.”
What It Means for Agribusinesses
For agro-processors, the cost of importing equipment such as mills, dryers, packaging units, and storage systems has historically been a major barrier. High import duties not only increased the cost of doing business but also stifled innovation, reduced competitiveness, and discouraged new entrants into the sector.
“This duty waiver will directly lower the capital burden on local agro-processors, making it more attractive to invest in scaling up operations, processing raw produce into finished goods, and creating jobs across the value chain,” said Mr. Tagoe.
Industry players have long argued that without affordable access to modern machinery, Ghana’s ambitious goals for food security, industrialization, and export diversification would remain out of reach.
A Critical Boost to Ghana’s 24-Hour Economy Vision
It also aligns with President Mahama’s broader strategy to industrialize Ghana’s economy under the 24-hour economy initiative. By incentivizing local production and round-the-clock agro-processing, the policy aims to cut post-harvest losses, improve food storage, and increase export volumes.
“If well implemented, this waiver will help agro-processing companies operate continuously without machinery constraints. That is how we build a sustainable, export-ready agribusiness sector,” Mr. Tagoe noted.
Implementation Challenges Remain
While the policy has been warmly received, GAWU warned that implementation bottlenecks could undermine its impact.
“In practice, accessing duty exemptions has been a bureaucratic nightmare. You sometimes pass through multiple agencies just to get the needed documentation. If this isn’t streamlined, we’ll lose the benefits at the port,” Mr. Tagoe cautioned.
He called on the Ministries of Finance and Agriculture, the Ghana Revenue Authority (GRA), and the Customs Division to urgently develop a simplified, transparent framework for businesses to access the waivers without delay or hidden costs.
