By Albert AMEKUDZI
Agriculture has long been the backbone of Ghana’s economy, employing a significant portion of the population and offering immense potential to address the nation’s food security needs.
Despite its importance, Ghana’s agricultural sector faces numerous challenges, including low productivity, limited value addition and inadequate distribution systems.
According to the World Bank, over the past five years, Ghana’s agricultural sector has experienced notable fluctuations. In the first half of 2024, the sector expanded by 5.1 percent, despite a significant contraction in cocoa production.
This growth was primarily driven by other sub-sectors, highlighting the resilience and potential within Ghana’s agriculture.
Despite this, challenges persist. In 2024, eight out of Ghana’s sixteen administrative regions faced drought-induced crop failures, leading to increased imports of staples like wheat, corn and rice.
Reuters further reported that the cocoa industry has been grappling with the cocoa swollen shoot virus, which significantly impacted yields and poses a long-term threat to production.
However, with innovative approaches like the district-based food production concept coupled with labour from the Prison Service, Ghana can improve both food security and the effectiveness of its National School Feeding Programme (NSFP).
District-based food production concept
The district-based food production model is a concept aimed at having each district focused on producing a specific food crop based on its comparative advantage. The districts are to harness labour from The Prison Service for agricultural activities.
This integrated approach can create a sustainable food system that benefits local economies, improves food security, strengthens the school feeding programme and simultaneously provides rehabilitative opportunities for prisoners.
The first step toward transforming Ghana’s agricultural sector is for the central government to show leadership and commitment to improving the country’s food security, reducing food inflation and resourcing key research institutions to undertake extensive research in that regard.
With an institution like the Centre for Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR), the government needs to resource it to map the country and identify each district’s comparative advantage in geographical, climatic and cultural strengths in food production.
Secondly, the centre, upon identifying these, needs to provide scientific information with regard to high-yielding seeds for these districts. This must be done in collaboration with the various district agriculture extension officers.
This part of the programme will essentially create thousands of jobs for the unemployed Agriculture Extension Officers who have been home for years without jobs. Agricultural research and extension services are crucial in disseminating new knowledge, technologies and practices to farmers. Strengthening public agricultural research institutions and extension networks will help bridge the knowledge gap, particularly in rural areas.
This approach has the potential to reduce dependence on food imports, create stable local food supplies and stimulate economic activity in rural areas.
Identifying key crops for each district
Every district in Ghana has unique agro-ecological characteristics that make it better suited for specific types of crops. By focusing on these strengths, districts can increase agricultural output and create food surpluses that can be channelled into the school feeding programme.
For example, northern districts – including the Upper East, Upper West and Savannah Regions – have the right conditions for growing rice, maize and sorghum. These regions could specialise in staple crops like maize and rice, which are essential to the diet of schoolchildren and the larger Ghanaian society.
The Central and Western Regions are well-suited for crops like cassava, plantains and palm oil. Volta Region’s fertile land is ideal for growing vegetables like tomatoes, peppers and leafy greens. The region can focus on producing fresh vegetables that contribute to the nutritional diversity of the country.
The Ashanti and Brong-Ahafo Regions could be the major suppliers of beans, groundnuts and even the raw materials to produce local food products such as groundnut paste or beans. Each district should develop a local agricultural plan that reflects the crops it can most efficiently produce, with a focus on maximising yield while minimising environmental impact.
Agricultural infrastructure
The Deputy Minister for Agriculture, John Setor Dumelo, during his vetting, indicated that key among the challenges farmers face is access to equipment and farmland. Due to the country’s land administration system, with almost all lands either being family land or stool lands, government must take a bold step to engage the National and Regional House of Chiefs to secure land for this national project.
It is a collective responsibility to ensure that we are able to feed our people; hence, government needs to work with the chiefs to release lands for this purpose. Government, through the District Assemblies, may go into a sharing ratio with the landowners to ensure that all stakeholders buy into the idea.
As government steps up its fight against illegal mining (galamsey) and seizing equipment, these machines can be used in some other critical areas by the districts. But we must be careful not to allow these illegal miners to use their influence to retrieve the equipment from the districts. Ghana is also blessed with abundance of water; hence, the need to win the fight against illegal mining to secure our water bodies.
The success of this project will also depend on the ability of the districts to ensure all year-round farming. This can be achieved through mechanised irrigation infrastructure to reduce dependence on erratic rainfall, especially in regions vulnerable to droughts. Community involvement in the implementation and management of the programme can help ensure that it aligns with local needs and preferences.
Communities could also participate in the cultivation and provision of food, creating a more sustainable model. Improving agricultural infrastructure is key to ensuring that food produced in rural areas reaches urban markets.
Farm labour and agricultural production
A key aspect of the proposed concept is utilising labour from the Ghana Prison Service. This not only provides prisoners with a productive means of rehabilitation, but also contributes to addressing the labour shortage in agriculture.
While Burkina Faso has implemented a similar concept where inmates receive reduced prison sentences while working on the farms, Ghana can adopt a similar approach and/or add incentives by remunerating the prisoners through an investment account. Upon completing their prison term, they may decide to take their money and start a business or have the option of being employed as farm managers.
Additionally, prison farms have been successfully utilised in many countries. The Government of Ghana can start its “Nkukor Nkiti Nkiti” policy across prison facilities by supporting them with initial birds and encouraging them to build the infrastructure in and around the prison environment.
Furthermore, the government may enhance this project by ensuring that all senior high schools have school farms and also run an agriculture programme where the school farms can be used as practical sessions.
It is imperative to note the need to have a comprehensive education around agriculture if Ghana wants to improve agriculture and reduce unemployment.
Prisoner rehabilitation through productive labour
The inclusion of labour from the prison system serves a dual purpose. First, it provides the country with much-needed agricultural labour; and second, it offers prisoners an opportunity to contribute positively to society.
Productive labour has been shown to reduce recidivism rates, as prisoners gain skills, develop strong work ethics and feel a sense of purpose. By engaging prisoners in productive agricultural work, the government can contribute to rehabilitating individuals and reintegrating them into society post-release.
This provides them with the skills and experience to pursue farming or agribusiness after serving their sentences.
Training prisoners in agricultural skills
According to reports, as of January 13, 2025, the total prison population in Ghana was 13,946, comprising 12,471 convicted prisoners, 1,022 remand prisoners and 453 trial prisoners. With these numbers, the Ghana Prison Service can collaborate with agricultural training institutions to provide prisoners with skills in modern farming techniques, agro-processing and farm management.
This will equip them with the knowledge necessary for sustainable farming practices. Structured programmes can be introduced to teach prisoners how to grow crops, manage farm equipment and use modern agricultural tools. Training can also focus on pest management, irrigation and sustainable practices such as organic farming.
Agro-processing skills: Beyond farming, prisoners can be trained in agro-processing techniques, such as milling, canning or packaging, to ensure that they can add value to the crops they produce.
This enhances the potential for local value chains to thrive and encourages entrepreneurship. The Ghana Prisons Service may engage with some key development partners such as GIZ Ghana for both technical and financial support.
Prison farm initiatives
Prisons can establish agricultural farms within their facilities or on nearby lands. These farms can produce a range of food crops, which can be used to support both the prison population and the school feeding programme.
Prisoners can help cultivate staple crops like maize, beans, rice and cassava, which are essential to the school feeding programme. By linking these crops to the districts producing them, prison farms can serve as a source of both local and national food security.
In addition to crop production, prisoners can participate in livestock farming, including poultry, piggery and goat farming. These animals provide a steady supply of protein – meat, eggs and milk – for inclusion in school meals.
Prison farms can also focus on sustainable farming practices, including organic farming, composting and soil conservation, to ensure long-term productivity and environmental protection.
Improving the School Feeding Programme through local agricultural integration
By focusing on local food production and utilising prison labour, the government can ensure a sustainable and more efficient supply chain for the National School Feeding Programme. District-based food production can help ensure that schools receive locally grown food.
By sourcing ingredients like maize, beans, rice, vegetables and meat from nearby farms – including those operated by prisons, the programme can reduce transportation costs and improve the freshness and quality of meals. Schools can purchase food directly from the district farms – including prison farms, ensuring that the supply chain is both efficient and reliable.
Scaling the programme
The ban on export of key staples including rice, millet, maize, sorghum and cowpeas by the Burkinabé Government makes it imperative for the Ghanaian Government to improve upon agriculture and produce enough to feed its citizens.
Ghana has vast and fertile land to produce enough food to feed it citizens and this can only be achieved through strong and committed leadership.
By integrating district-based food production and prison labour, the school feeding programme can scale effectively and reach more schools across the country. This will ensure that children from both urban and rural areas benefit from nutritious meals, reducing hunger and improving educational outcomes; thereby meeting the Sustainable Development Goals.
Creating a sustainable agricultural value chain
To ensure that district-based food production is effective and sustainable, the government should focus on creating value chains within each district. This involves ensuring that the entire process from production to processing, storage and transportation is optimised.
To add value and reduce post-harvest losses, districts should invest in local processing facilities. For example, local cassava mills, rice mills and tomato-paste factories can be set up to add value to raw agricultural products before they are sent to schools.
The various districts need to be creative and directly engage key development partners for technical and financial support without necessarily relying on the central government to provide them with all the resources.
Internally generated funds can also be used for some of these special initiatives to ensure that the district contributes significantly to the national food stock.
Having implemented a successful and yielding programme, the districts may be directed to support the various senior high schools and basic schools within their districts with food production in support of the national school feeding programme by the central government.
The surplus food produced can be supplied to market women to help control food inflation. Further, the various districts can collaborate on a barter system depending on the districts’ strength.
Conclusion
Developing Ghana’s agricultural sector to feed the nation and strengthen the National School Feeding Programme requires innovative strategies and a multi-pronged approach. By leveraging district-based food production, each area can focus on its comparative agricultural strengths, creating food surpluses that contribute to local economies and national food security.
Furthermore, utilising labour from the Ghana Prison Service offers a sustainable way to engage in productive agricultural activities while providing rehabilitative opportunities for prisoners.
This integrated approach will not only address food insecurity but also enhance the nutritional content of school meals, create jobs and stimulate local economies. Ultimately, a revitalised agricultural sector, coupled with a stronger school feeding programme, can contribute to the health, education and well-being of Ghana’s future generations.
The writer is an integrated marketing communication consultant and health & safety professional with extensive experience in marketing, development communication, content creation, storytelling, event planning and management.
