Stranded onion traders’ saga a monumental failure on govt’s PFJ – Minority

The Minority in Parliament says the closure of the Niger border due to the military takeover of the country has revealed the monumental failure of the government’s Planting for Food and Jobs policy. Ghanaian onion traders who have been stranded at the Benin border for an extended period have appealed to President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo to intervene and secure the release of approximately 70 trucks carrying onions from Niger to Ghana via Benin.

As a consequence of the border closure arising from the Niger coup, these trucks and their drivers have been immobilized at the border for several weeks. Responding to the concerns, the Ranking Member on the Food and Agriculture Committee of Parliament, Eric Opoku, criticized the government for importing vegetables that were supposed to be produced under the Planting for Food and Jobs programme.

“It is obvious that we are not able to produce enough onions in Ghana to meet the demand here. So, we import a lot of onions from Niger. We spend over $100 million annually to import onions and ginger to support local production. The coup in Niger and the subsequent closure of the borders are seriously affecting the traders.”

“I have already said that the Planting for Food and Jobs programme has been a monumental failure. We invested so much in the programme, but we achieved nothing. All the items that were captured under the programme, we are still importing in larger quantities,” Eric Opoku said.

The prices of vegetables have seen astronomical increases due to the political unrest in Niger, with bags of vegetables now ranging between GH¢1,500 and GH¢1,600. Industry players fear that the prices could rise to GH¢3,000-GH¢4,000 if the situation is not quickly resolved.

By: Nii Ayikwei Okine