Decentralise Agricultural Policies at Local Level to Drive Growth – CAG
The Chamber of Agribusiness Ghana (CAG) has cautioned that the continued neglect of decentralised agriculture at the local level could undermine the success of major national initiatives, including the Feed Ghana Programme (FGP), the 24-Hour Economy Policy, land banks and Nkukor Nkitinkiti.
According to the Chamber, weak district-level agricultural services pose a significant risk to the effective implementation of national policies, with critical objectives such as food security, youth employment, agribusiness development, and rural transformation increasingly compromised.
CAG has therefore appealed to government to decentralise key agricultural sector policies, stressing that sustainable growth can only be achieved when local-level structures are adequately empowered and resourced.
Chief Executive Officer of CAG, Anthony Morrison, noted that the disregard for decentralised agriculture weakens both local and national economic growth. He explained that the challenge facing the sector goes beyond policy formulation at the central level and extends to implementation failures, particularly where financing at the district level is inadequate.
Mr. Morrison pointed out that the District Assemblies Common Fund (DACF), established under Article 252 of the 1992 Constitution, remains the most significant source of discretionary funding for Metropolitan, Municipal, and District Assemblies (MMDAs). The Fund, he said, was designed to promote equitable development by ensuring that local governments have access to national resources.
However, the Chamber observed that the DACF framework has a fundamental weakness, as it does not provide any statutory or protected allocation for agriculture. This gap, CAG explained, has far-reaching implications, as District Chief Executives, faced with competing priorities such as roads, schools, markets, sanitation, and administrative costs, often sideline agriculture not due to lack of importance, but because it lacks legally protected fiscal space within the decentralised financing system.
As a result, district departments of agriculture are frequently under-resourced, lacking vehicles and motorbikes for extension services, funds for farmer training and demonstrations and support for agribusiness and value-chain development. Extension officers, the Chamber noted are often confined to their offices, unable to engage farmers consistently, thereby undermining productivity, innovation and resilience, particularly in rural communities.
CAG emphasised that if Ghana is serious about decentralisation and local economic development, agriculture must no longer be treated as an afterthought in district financing. The Chamber argued that urgent and concrete reforms are required.
Mr. Morrison suggested that government should introduce a statutory minimum allocation of the DACF to agriculture, dedicated specifically to agricultural and agribusiness development at the MMDA level. He noted that ring-fencing even a modest percentage of the Fund for agriculture would significantly improve extension delivery, irrigation support, mechanisation services, post-harvest management and value-chain development.
The Chamber also called for stronger accountability mechanisms, proposing that district composite budgets should include clearly defined agricultural budget lines. In addition, agricultural performance indicators should form part of MMDA and District Chief Executive assessments, with agriculture explicitly recognised as a driver of local economic growth.
Furthermore, CAG urged government to consider more ambitious institutional reforms, including the establishment of a Ghana Agriculture and Agribusiness Service (GAAS) under the Ministry of Food and Agriculture. The proposed service, similar in structure to the Ghana Education Service and Ghana Health Service, would provide a dedicated institutional framework for decentralised agricultural service delivery, supported by predictable funding, logistics and structured career progression for staff.
