Government has deepened a strategic fisheries partnership with China to close the country’s estimated US$800million fish supply deficit.
The Ministry of Fisheries and Aquaculture Development (MoFAD) – led by sector minister Emelia Arthur who recently steered a high-level engagement between Ghana and China – said the partnership will strengthen bilateral cooperation in fisheries and aquaculture to enhance food security, job creation and sustainable blue economy growth.
She highlighted government’s commitment to repositioning the sector through science-based management, aquaculture expansion, value addition and strategic international partnerships.
The engagement took place in Beijing during a meeting between the sector minister and Han Jun – Secretary of the Communist Party of China’s Leadership Group – and officials from the China’s Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs (MARA).
At the event, MoFAD presented a comprehensive Ghana-China Fisheries Partnership Framework outlining Ghana’s vision for a sustainable, resilient and investment-ready fisheries and aquaculture sector that supports national development while protecting aquatic ecosystems.
Addressing the engagement, Emelia Arthur emphasised that fisheries and aquaculture remain central to Ghana’s food security and economic transformation agenda.
She however disclosed that Ghana’s annual fish demand stands at 1.28 million metric tonnes while domestic production remains at about 684,000 metric tonnes, creating a supply deficit of approximately 590,000 metric tonnes valued between US$600–800million annually.
With key marine stocks – including sardinella – depleted to 13.8 percent of sustainable levels, the minister stressed that government is placing emphasis on aquaculture to drive future growth in the sector and supplement production with a national production target of 177,000 metric tonnes by 2027.
MoFAD touts investment opportunities
At the meeting, Madam Arthur highlighted Ghana’s vast natural endowments including the 8,502 km² Lake Volta – the world’s largest artificial lake – currently utilised at less than five percent; presenting major opportunities for aquaculture expansion, particularly tilapia production, under favourable year-round water temperatures.
The ministry identified several high-impact investment opportunities for Chinese enterprises: including fish feed manufacturing, SPF hatcheries, cold chain infrastructure and modern fish processing facilities.
With post-harvest losses currently ranging between 25-50 percent in inland fisheries and 10-20 percent for marine fisheries while deep processing remains below 10 percent, the minister said there are enormous opportunities for large-scale fillet or surimi processing capacity in the country.
During the meeting, potential investors were assured of flexible investment models – including wholly-owned ventures, joint ventures, public-private partnerships (PPPs) and technology licencing – supported by Free Zones incentives such as tax holidays, duty exemptions and unrestricted profit repatriation.
MoFAD reaffirmed its commitment to leading a science-driven, investment-ready and inclusive transformation of Ghana’s fisheries and aquaculture sector in close collaboration with strategic international partners.