Former President John Dramani Mahama has pledged to implement a system of minimum guaranteed prices for cereals and legumes if he is elected.
This initiative aims to stabilize food costs by allowing the private sector to collaborate with the National Buffer Stock to manage surplus food supplies.
Mahama emphasized that this strategy would enable the Buffer Stock to store excess food during periods of low prices and release it when prices rise, ensuring a steady food supply while providing fair compensation to farmers for their crops.
He made these remarks during a farmers’ forum in Tumu as part of his ‘Build the Ghana We Want tour’ in the Sissala area.
“I know some of you have started the production of sesame, which is a high-value crop. Such farmers will be supported with small loans so that you can expand and export.”
Additionally, former President Mahama detailed essential measures to bolster the agricultural industry, emphasizing the dedication to supplying farming inputs.
He encouraged the establishment of farmer cooperatives to facilitate access to necessary assistance. Mahama reassured farmers that the farmer service center inaugurated in Gwollu in 2016 would be reinstated in all districts nationwide.
These centers would serve as comprehensive hubs, offering a range of resources from fertilizers, seeds, and machinery to a micro-credit program enabling farmers to secure loans.
“I will do something about the roads and the bridge especially from Bawiesebelle to Duu and the other areas to ensure that you cart your food products to market centres safely,” he assured.
He further remarked that due to the ineffective execution of the current government’s One Village One Dam (1V1D) initiative, which was inadequately planned, the NDC administration would construct genuine dams capable of retaining water to support agricultural endeavors for both crops and livestock.
Addressing inquiries regarding the discontinued cotton industry, he pledged that if elected, they would rejuvenate the cotton ginnery and provide farming inputs to enable the government to purchase produce from farmers.
“We have a ginnery here in Tumu, Bolgatanga and Tamale and I will bring back cotton production,” he said.
The former president also tackled issues within the education sector, pledging to eliminate licensure examinations and integrate teacher trainee licensing into their final year exams at the Colleges.
Regarding agribusiness, Mr. Mahama commended and commended the efforts of Kedan, a maize processing factory in Tumu, and reaffirmed his commitment to supporting Kedan and other agribusiness ventures in alignment with his 24-hour economy pledge.
Mr. Mohammed Bataglia, the NDC Parliamentary candidate for the Sissala East, described John Mahama as a man of integrity and a man true to his word, emphasizing that he would not resort to deceit to gain power. Mr. Razak Mahama Navri, the Sissala East constituency chairman of the NDC, urged unity and pledged to exert maximum effort to wrest the Parliamentary seat from the ruling NPP.