Ghana's Deputy Minister of Food and Agriculture ,Mr. Clement Eledi, has reported that the national production of plantain increased from 1.1 million metric tonnes to 3.6 million metric tonnes per annum between 1992 and 2005, an increase of about 230 per cent.
Eledi attributed the improvement to work of Ghanaian researchers since the inception of the national agricultural research programme. He said Ghana had since 2001 remained the largest producer of plantain in West and Central Africa, with the current per capita consumption standing at 101.8 kg. He said plantain contributes about 13.1 per cent of the agricultural gross domestic product. It ranks high in food preference, with 90 per cent consumed locally.
Eledi said only a small percentage of the total production was exported to Europe, United Kingdom, Burkina Faso, Mali and Niger, though the demand was high in these markets. He attributed the low exportation percentage to the fact that apart from that consumed locally, quite a lot of the plantain rotted on the farm. "If there were strong linkages among stakeholders and the value chain was intact, this situation would not occur", he said.
Dr. Irene Egyir, a researcher and a lecturer at the University of Ghana, Legon who presented the findings of a study, said agricultural policies had not adequately maintained the country's competitive position in the world markets for a number of agricultural commodities, which included plantain.
The study identified major constraints such as low farm gate price, high tax rates, high cost of transport, seasonal market price instability, irregular visits by researchers, breaches of informal contracts between traders and farmers, poor handling of produce, lack of processing machines and lack of product standardisation. The study recommended innovations in the areas of policy, capacity building, of actors, business finance, strengthening of horizontal and vertical linkages as well as market infrastructure.
Professor Emmanuel Owusu-Bennoah, Director-General of the Council for Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR) said researchers generated knowledge "and the knowledge does not get to the people on the ground and it is necessary to bring the key players together to modernise agriculture."
Accra Mail
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