Data from the Ministry of Food and Agriculture reveals that rice imports to Ghana fell by about forty-five-point-three four percent between 2021 and 2023.
In 2021, the total rice import was estimated at 805,000 metric tons.
It fell to 650,000 metric tones in 2022 and subsequently to 440,000 metric tons in 2023.
This reduction, according to stakeholders in the industry, could be attributed to increases in import taxes and the reversal of the benchmark value discount policy on some selected imported products, including rice, into the country.
Farmers over the years have lamented about the lack of buyers for harvested rice in warehouses across the country and price disparities on the market as a result of cheap, smuggled foreign rice brands.
To make up for the shortfall in the overall national rice supply, the report said Ghana must produce 1.0 million metric tons of rice locally to be self-sufficient.
This will help save the nation about 500 million dollars in import expenditure annually.
Source: Myjoyonline
