President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo has commissioned the OmniFert Fertilizer Factory, a wholly-owned Ghanaian fertilizer manufacturing company.  At the commissioning ceremony on Friday, he applauded the promoters of the project for the work they have done in establishing a world-class facility, which, when its second phase is completed, will make it the largest indigenous blending plant in the country.  Emphasising the importance of the factory, the President stated the creation of a buoyant agricultural sector is at the heart of his government’s transformation agenda, “because agriculture continues to be the anchor of the country’s economy.” According to him, “today, through our flagship programme for the revival of Ghanaian agriculture, dubbed “Planting for Food and Jobs”, we have provided support to some 1 million smallholder farmers, who produced, last year, a bumper harvest.” President Akufo-Addo stressed that “for the first time in a very long while, we exported food to our neighbouring countries, and we have also signalled our intention to reduce rice imports by at least 50 per cent this year. There is every indication that this year’s harvest will be even greater than last year’s.”   With most small-holder Ghanaian farms characterised by low productivity, the President stated that the application of correct amounts of fertiliser will be a factor in multiplying yield and enhancing farmers’ incomes from the same acreage of land.  “That is why a key component of the programme for “Planting for Food and Jobs” is the provision of subsidized fertilizers to farmers,” the President said.  He, thus, applauded OmniFert for blending fertilizers locally, and offering the right blends to farmers according to their crops and specific soil types, explaining that “it will, surely, help create jobs for those of our youth interested in agriculture, and will increase productivity on our farms.” Realising the vision of a Ghana Beyond Aid, he noted, means “we must produce more locally to satisfy the demands of the domestic market, and we must equally produce in excess to meet international demands. Companies like Omnifert can help in achieving our goal of making Ghana the agricultural hub of West Africa.” President Akufo-Addo encouraged private sector players across all value chains of agriculture, such as improved seeds and fertilizer companies, and companies engaged in agricultural mechanisation, irrigation and water management, warehousing, food manufacturing and processing, logistics, cold storage and transportation, information technology and telecommunications, to join hands with government, and play their part in creating a Ghana Beyond Aid.  “I have great confidence in the Ghanaian’s sense of enterprise, creativity, innovation and hard work, and believe firmly that, given an enabling atmosphere, the sky is the limit for us. The promoters of Omnifertprovide the evidence. “I congratulate them on this remarkable achievement, and encourage them to continue to be shining examples of Ghanaian success,” the President added.