The 24-Hour Economy and Accelerated Export Development Secretariat (24H+) has signed Heads of Terms with four investment partners for a US$270 million National Poultry Transformation Programme aimed at boosting domestic poultry production and creating 12,000 direct jobs.

The agreement, signed at the Tony Blair Institute for Global Change in Accra, brings together UK-based agrifood investment company Agrium Capital, Petra Trust, Axis Pension Trust and Ghana EXIM Bank.

The investment is described as the largest UK agrifood investment in Ghana to date and is expected to support the development of an integrated poultry value chain covering feed production, breeding, hatchery operations, broiler farming, processing, cold-chain facilities, logistics and market access.

Under the first phase, the programme is expected to produce about 20,000 tonnes of dressed and processed broiler products annually, with plans to scale production to 50,000 tonnes.

The initiative is also intended to reduce Ghana’s dependence on imported poultry, with the country currently spending approximately US$400 million annually on chicken and other poultry products. Increased local production is expected to retain a greater share of that expenditure within the Ghanaian economy while creating opportunities across the agricultural value chain.

Presidential Adviser on the 24-Hour Economy and Accelerated Export Development, Augustus Goosie Tanoh, said the investment demonstrates the government’s strategy of leveraging both domestic and international capital to expand productive sectors.

“This is a purposeful blend of foreign private capital and Ghanaian private capital, aligned to build this industry at scale,” he said.

Economic Counsellor and Head of the Growth Team at the British High Commission, Simone Mousey, welcomed the agreement, describing it as an opportunity to deepen commercial relations between Ghana and the United Kingdom, particularly in agriculture and agrifood.

Chief Executive Officer of Agrium Capital, Rod Bassett, said the investment reflected confidence in Ghana’s poultry industry and its capacity to contribute to food security, domestic production and value creation.

Country Director for Ghana at the Tony Blair Institute for Global Change, Sam Mensah-Baah, said the programme demonstrated the importance of partnerships capable of converting Ghana’s economic ambitions into jobs, productive capacity and sustainable growth.