Provost of the College of Agriculture and Natural Resources at KNUST, Professor Dadson Awunyo-Vitor, has criticized Ghana’s agricultural modernisation efforts, describing them as unbalanced and overly focused on primary production. His remarks were made during an interview on TeknoKrat on Focus FM, hosted by Khayrullah Issah Dobo, following President Mahama’s announcement on July 28, 2025, of a new initiative to promote local agricultural processing and value-added production.
Prof. Awunyo-Vitor stated that while significant government investments have gone into modernising farming methods over the past two decades, the overall impact has been limited due to a lack of integration across the entire agricultural value chain. “There have been many attempts to modernise agriculture and improve food security, but the desired results are not showing.
We still import large quantities of food that we are capable of producing locally,” he lamented.
He attributed the problem to weak linkages within the agricultural value chain, stressing that processing, marketing, and distribution are often overlooked, making it difficult for producers to thrive. “When we talk about a value chain, the weakest link determines the strength of the entire chain.
If farmers can’t get their produce to processors and consumers in an efficient way, it discourages production,” he explained. Prof. Awunyo-Vitor further highlighted that government efforts have concentrated too heavily on primary production—such as the provision of inputs and farming technologies—without adequately empowering outgrowers or supporting agro-processing industries.
“If we do not create an enabling environment for outgrowers to control pricing and access markets, we will continue to repeat the same mistakes,” he cautioned. He concluded by urging the government to put greater focus on value addition, market linkages, and supply chain integration to ensure that farmers benefit and consumers enjoy stable prices.
“Let’s quickly integrate the value chain. That is the only way to ensure agricultural modernisation benefits everyone—from producer to consumer,” he said.