Francis Ennor, the Upper East Regional Director, Department of Agriculture has disclosed that there is an ongoing discussion among rice producers and millers, the Peasant Farmers Association of Ghana (PFAG), the government and other relevant players within the rice industry. The discussions are centred around providing safety nets and making direct investments in the local rice industry to support rice producers expand their trade and sell of produce with relative ease.
Mr. Ennor explained that at the end of the discussions, workable solutions to the many problems of the rice farmers would be implemented. He said these when he spoke on A1 Radio’s Day Break Upper East.
The Regional Director of the Department of Agriculture explained that locally produced rice may cost higher on the market as compared to imported rice because of the cost of farm inputs including fertilizers, other chemicals and farm machinery. These he said drive up the local cost of production.
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Responding to comments that a bag of rice seeds has gone up from 80ghc to 20ghc, Mr. Ennor again blamed the cost of production as the reason for the price increase. He explained that the government’s commitment to providing subsidies for the seeds that are locally produced is resolute.
“The cost of production and the cost of prices of the inputs on the global markets are some of the reasons why the prices have gone up but the government will continue to subsidies. But to what margin the subsidies will come, I cannot say for now. When the time comes, sometime in February, the government will fix the prices,” he explained.
Meanwhile, the Peasant Farmers Association of Ghana (PFAG) has decried the tremendous effect the suspension of the reversal of the benchmark values would have on local producers and manufacturers; particularly rice farmers. PFAG argued that rice farmers in the country risk losing the investments made in the last planting season. This is because tonnes of paddy rice from the farmers have been left in warehouses unsold. The situation could be particularly dire for farmers in the Upper East Region.
A1radioonline.com|101.1 MHz|Mark Kwasi Ahumah Smith|Ghana
