The Development Bank of Ghana (DBG) has announced its commitment to ensuring that the policy environment for the agricultural sector is production friendly. Chief Economist Dr Kwabena Opuni-Frimpong at a media engagement session noted that DBG is keen to identify how certain agricultural policies have impeded the growth of the sector. According to him, when these blockades are ascertained through various workshops across the country, a Bank’s policy advocacy team will employ an effective modus operandi to execute the cause. “DBG as a thought leader would have to also take up initiatives that support what other partners are doing within the sector. Now if we can help to unlock or solve the policy problem, it affects all of them and it becomes a public good from which everyone will benefit and that is one of the key things that DBG will ensure that the policy environment is right for the sector to operate more efficiently and productively,” he said on Thursday.
Dr Opuni was optimistic that the project would reduce the pricing of foodstuff on the market. He added, “Food inflation accounts for the huge inflation in the inflation basket. That is why we want to boost the production of foodstuff, especially of our staples which will affect the supply and demand. “If we increase the supply, then obviously prices will come down and that would make it easier for ordinary Ghanaians to purchase them,” he said.
On his part, the Deputy Chief Economist, Godwin Kojo Ayenor said the Bank has selected four value chain foods – poultry, rice, soyabean and maize as its focus to address the looming food insecurity threats. He noted that the investment in the aforementioned food chain is DBG’s contribution to support the government and the private sector in agricultural financing.
“For the economic structure that we want, we need to grow food and feed ourselves and then export the rest. The private sector needs to be competitive and government needs to create the enabling environment for that to happen, DBG is here to identify the gaps and help create the enabling environment for the private sector to invest in the agric sector,” he said.
