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Renowned Agricultural Research Scientist, Professor Roger Kanton, has delivered a sharp critique of Ghana’s agricultural policies, accusing successive governments of relying heavily on slogans rather than taking meaningful action to address the country’s food security challenges.
During a special feature on Channel One TV on Wednesday, May 7, 2025, analyzing President John Dramani Mahama’s first 120 days in office, Prof. Kanton praised the president’s reviewable social contract as a “groundbreaking initiative” in governance. However, he was unsparing in his criticism of the broader agricultural landscape.
“Our challenge with agriculture is purely commitment. Agriculture is not rocket science. We have to do it right to turn things around. The thing is, we have done it before,” he said, stressing that the failure is not due to lack of knowledge or capacity but a lack of political will.
Prof. Kanton argued that programmes such as Planting for Food and Jobs (Phases I & II), Rearing for Food and Jobs, and the current Feed Ghana initiative have delivered minimal results due to weak implementation.
“There is a lot of sloganeering, rhetoric, and advocacy, but agriculture doesn’t like noise. It is not like gender issues and anti-corruption, you focus on producing, you don’t make noise there, and get the job done,” he noted.
He also drew attention to the disproportionate emphasis placed on cocoa at the expense of other essential food crops. “If you ask Ghanaians to prioritise agriculture, we have been doing it year after year, but cocoa has not even got to number 50, but cocoa is given such special attention. Cocoa’s attention is so high above the other crops. But who eats cocoa for food?” he questioned.
Expressing disappointment at the country’s struggle to attain food self-sufficiency, Prof. Kanton highlighted the underutilization of Ghana’s scientific talent. “We have the structures, we have one of the best scientists in agriculture who is are Ghanaians. If you don’t produce what you eat, who should produce for you to eat?” he asked.
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