The Ministry of Food and Agriculture (MoFA) has launched Phase Two of the Planting for Food and Jobs programme, dubbed PFJ2.0, covering all 261 districts nationwide.
The registration process for interested farmers and institutions involves visiting their district agricultural directorate, where extension officers will assist in capturing their data using government-supplied tablets. To streamline this process, the Ghana Agriculture and Agribusiness Platform (GhAAP), a mobile and web application platform, has been developed, with agricultural extension agents (AEAs) and technical officers trained to utilize it effectively.
Participation in the programme requires farmers or producers to possess land or a farm, have their profiles captured at the district level, hold Ghanaian citizenship with a valid Ghana card, and engage in farming on prioritized commodity crops. For companies or institutions, legal registration is mandatory.
Under PFJ2.0, a smart farmer, smart farm, and digitized agriculture approach will be adopted using GhAAP, with eleven prioritized commodities including poultry, rice, maize, soya bean, sorghum, tomato, onion, pepper, cassava, yam, and plantains.
Unlike its predecessor, PFJ2.0 encompasses commercial farmers in addition to smallholder farmers. Minister Dr. Bryan Acheampong officially announced the registration exercise, urging interested parties to register with their local agricultural extension agents at the District Department of Agriculture. Real-time data capture, monitoring, and evaluation will be facilitated through a central digital platform, tracking the programme’s progress.
Dr. Acheampong emphasized that PFJ2.0 builds upon the successes of the initial programme while addressing its limitations. It adopts a holistic value chain approach, strengthening linkages among actors along selected agricultural commodity value chains and improving service delivery to maximize impact.
A notable difference in PFJ 2.0 is the replacement of direct input subsidies with a smart agricultural financial support system featuring a zero-interest input credit system where payment will be in kind. This underscores the programme’s private-sector-driven nature, as potential farmers secure loans from financial institutions and repay in kind.
The ministry is committed to the successful implementation of this transformative approach, aiming to empower farmers, enhance productivity, and foster sustainable agricultural development in Ghana.
