Can Ghana avoid the world food crises?
April 16, 2008
Several countries around the world are grappling with severe food crises. In some countries, people have actually staged violent demonstrations to demand an everyday commodity like bread. Experts believe that the rising food prices have been caused by low food production as a result of global warming and floods, increased demand for food in some developing economies, and increased demand for grains for the conversion to biofuels.
Here in Ghana, government says there is no cause for alarm and that there is more food than people actually need.
According to Agric Minister, Ernest Akubuor Debrah, it is even possible for Ghana to export some surplus food.
According to the minister, the country has enough surpluses of cassava, yam, cocoyam, maize and plantain. He however said there are shortfalls in the availability of sorghum, millet and rice.
He revealed that the total supply of maize available for consumption is 1.038 million metric tonnes as against national demand which is estimated at 998,000, leaving the country with a surplus of 38,000 metric tones. He said of the total supply of 8.17 million metric tonnes of cassava available, the country’s demand is 3.4 million metric tonnes, leaving a surplus of 4.6 million metric tonnes. Mr. Debrah said Ghana has 3.9 million metric tonnes of yam out of which only 955,000 metric tonnes will be consumed by Ghanaians, leaving a surplus of 2.9 million metric tonnes.
He said the country has 3.0 million metric tonnes of plantain in store, and would consume only 1.9 million metric tonnes, leaving a surplus of 1.1 million metric tonnes.
Cocoyam, he said we have 1.5 million metric tonnes in store and we would consume 1.3 million metric tonnes and have a surplus of 219, 000 metric tonnes.
The shortfall in food supply, the minister revealed is in the production of milllet, the country produces 90,000 metric tonnes, and therefore, with a demand of 145,000 metric tonnes, there is a shortfall of 55,000 metric tonnes. There is also a shortfall in the production of sorghum. “we have a demand of 127,000 metric tonnes, but supply is 230,000 metric tonnes, and so we have a deficit of 106,000 metric tonnes.”
He assured the country that the Brong Ahafo region has surpluses in almost all the major food crops, but the Greater Accra region on the other hand, has deficits in all the major food crops.
He argued that what is leading to rise in food prices in some parts of the country are transportation costs involved in moving food from areas where there are surpluses to areas where they are experiencing deficits, and trading activities.
He therefore assured the country that “there is no cause for alarm, because we have enough food to feed us until the next harvest season.” The next harvest season is around August 2008.
What do you think?
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14 Responses to “Can Ghana avoid the world food crises?”
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Ghanaians, let be very careful about how we deal with these Liberians refugees issues.
Some of them are worry to go back because those who killed their people are still in Liberia and hunting for them too. Why should we sent these innocent ones there to be slaughtered?
If the country is peaceful why should the UN keep more than10,000 military force there? Remember, God will judge us! THINK TWICE!!
I would have been surprised if the minister had said something other than what he said.I don’t have statistics to prove otherwise.My problem Kojo is what we do with the surpluses,how they are preserved for lean situations.I don’t see that addressed in the article.Also i know that shortages have occured in our neighbouring countries,are they checking smuggling of the food stuffs?
i think it alright if the overnment consistently lie to us almost about everything.We were told inflation could not be a problem for ghanaians but rather it keeps increasing.
If they would lie about anything and everything, please it should not be about food. I would entreat the Minister to read the good book the Bible and see the cause of Isreals´ slavery.
It will be wise if Ghana prepare for the worse.
The minister is talking about demand of Ghanaians which the critiria for the surplus. Isnt the demand low becuase rice has become the stable diet and so we consume less of the local diet? take rice out and what he says we have will not be enough for local consumption.
i think that this is a time to sit and put things together and plan. our politicians will always say what they want us to hear but we must read in between lines and do what is right.
I think Ghanaians should eat more indigenous foods like kenkey,yam and plantain.Because if there is going to be any shortage its going to be basically rice and wheat.
it is very disheartening for service personnel in accra to work for one and a half month before being paid a month’s allowance.this problem has persisted since november 2007.we are tired of these delays.authorities must bear in mind that their action is disincentive patriotism
The way food shortage is affecting the world is frightening.Ghanaians let us be extra careful on the way we go about our food. Let’s avoid wastage.But what did the minister of agric say? Is it the first time Ghanaians eat bread made or corn or cassava dough? Of course not.There should be stringent measures to takcle the issue and let us stop this concert party from the minister.
Kojo, I think you are being unfair to the minister. The report paints the picture that the ministry is not looking at long term food security. I had a look at the figures and Gh can survive way beyond August even if there is zero harvests in the next season. We need to understand the dynamics of agric markets and economics in Gh to understand this and provided the figures are true, there isnt the slightest cause for worry in Gh.
Maybe we shd try and respect expert opinions on issues, rather than always letting the public have its say on every other issue. This kind of media attitude can and will create an “artificial” food shortage in the country. The shortage may not be real in the system but people will hoard and increase prices.
With all due respect I plead with the media to just this one time respect what authorities and experts have to say.
I keep wondering, how the minister measured his food statistics, when ghana lacks storage facilities and also when out foods are scattered all over ghana.
I keep wondering, how the minister measured his food statistics, when ghana lacks storage facilities and also when our foods are scattered all over ghana.
Believe me, a quantity of the statistics he gave on cassava is getting rotten right now as I type.
Oh Ghana, what do we do to our excess food.
Ghanaians need to learn to how to eat local food like kenkey, konkonte, water yam ,banku, cocoyam and plantains and sto relying on imported food like rice and wheat (bread). some people cannot stay without eating bread , rice and impoted fruits.
imported food items would continue to be dearer if oil prices continue to increase.
we should eat what we grow. period.
Rice had been a local ghanaian food from ages before imported rice started pouring in. We only need to develop our agricultural base by encouraging our subsistence farmers to expand their farms. Imported rice is becoming dorminant on our tables because its comparatively cheaper and easier to cook than the yam,maize ,cocoyam etc,etc for a family meal.
Lets grow more staples and make them cheaper.
I was taken aback by the politically-expedient jokes by the Agric Minister that Ghana has so much food in store that the country could even afford to export the surplus food.
Sometimes, some of these ministers make me feel that governance in Africa is about the person who can crack the most jokes. Where is the food? In fact, have they built any new silos since the overthrow of the NKrumah regime or the food items are being storred in the water-clogged silos throughout the districts?
In any case, the minister makes me believe that cassava, yam and cocoyam have become the major staples for all the peoples of this world. I am aware that cassava is not the type of food that is resulting in the crisis. Rather millet, sorghum, rice and wheat are what the discerning people of this world are talking about.
Kojo, but is this not the same agric minister who lied on your radio station that the Aveyime rice project was going to be started by June of 2007 and when the date came and nothing happened and you guys questioned him, he declined to make any comment?
Kojo, we are watchin these senior jokers!