The Minister for Food and Agriculture, Hon. Eric Opoku, has announced that the government has secured and deposited GH¢41 million for the construction of a major inland valley irrigation project at Waamu in the Atwima Nwabiagya North District of the Ashanti Region.
The project, which is expected to transform rice farming in the area, was officially launched during a sod-cutting ceremony held at Kumi.
Addressing chiefs, farmers and stakeholders at the ceremony, Hon. Eric Opoku revealed that the Waamu irrigation facility will be completed within 18 months (one year, six months) and will open up 114 hectares of irrigable land for cultivation.
According to him, the developed land will be equipped with modern irrigation systems and shared among local rice farmers to ensure year-round farming, increased yields, and reduced dependence on rainfall.
The minister assured that after completion of the irrigation infrastructure, the Ministry of Food and Agriculture will supply beneficiary farmers with high-yielding, improved rice seeds.
“The rice we are going to produce here in Ghana will be far more delicious, nutritious, and of better quality than the foreign rice imported into our markets,” he stated.
Hon. Opoku emphasised the government’s commitment to achieving self-sufficiency in rice production, noting that by 2027, Ghana will stop importing rice seeds.
“It is our wish and target that by 2027, no one will import rice seeds into the country. We will produce our own seeds locally and supply them to our rice farmers,” he declared.
The Waamu project forms part of the Ministry’s Food Systems Resilience Project (FSRP), being implemented in collaboration with the Atwima Nwabiagya North District Assembly.
As part of a comprehensive value chain approach, the government will also provide 55 modern rice processing machines to support farmers from land preparation and planting to harvesting, processing, and marketing.
This, he said, will reduce post-harvest losses, add value to local rice, create jobs for the youth, and make Ghanaian rice more competitive on the local market.
Hon. Opoku urged the beneficiary farmers to take full advantage of the project, practice good agronomic practices, and work closely with extension officers to ensure its success.
Farmers and traditional leaders present at the ceremony expressed gratitude to the government for the intervention, describing it as a game-changer for food security and livelihoods in the district.