The General Agricultural Workers’ Union (GAWU) of the Trades Union Congress has marked the 2025 Farmers’ Day celebration with a renewed call for the establishment of a Ghana Agricultural Service, insisting that the annual commemoration risks losing its meaning without a permanent professional structure to anchor agricultural development.

In a statement issued on Friday, December 5, the Union said the day remained one of national pride, honouring citizens “whose efforts and hard work feed our nation” and whose resilience sustains the economy through unpredictable weather patterns, market instability, and high production costs. But GAWU warned that celebration alone was insufficient without institutional reforms to secure long-term gains.

GAWU acknowledged recent government interventions, including the Presidential Initiatives in Agriculture and Agribusiness (PIAA), expanded mechanisation support, irrigation improvements and a revived focus on domestic production. These, the Union noted, reflected growing policy commitment to food security and youth participation in agriculture.

However, it stressed that the absence of a dedicated agricultural service continued to undermine continuity, accountability, and research-driven development. “Farmers’ Day is meaningless without the establishment of a Ghana Agricultural Service,” the statement declared, arguing that reactive and ad hoc policymaking had weakened the sector for decades.

According to GAWU, a Ghana Agricultural Service would function as a permanent body responsible for policy formulation, extension services, research coordination and implementation, similar to the Ghana Health Service and Ghana Education Service. Such a structure, it said, would ensure that agricultural workers’ expertise and lived experiences directly shape national policy.

The Union highlighted major gaps that a new service must address, beginning with the country’s “deeply worrying” shortage of extension officers. With one extension officer currently serving an estimated 1,500 farmers, Ghana falls far below the international standard of 1:500. GAWU said the situation persisted despite the availability of qualified graduates in agronomy, crop science, horticulture, and related fields.

It also called for urgent recapitalisation of COCOBOD, warning that the cocoa sector remains under severe pressure due to debt and limited investment capacity. A stronger, better-resourced COCOBOD, it said, was essential for improved yields, value-addition, and sustainable farmer support.

GAWU further urged the government to revisit the 2013 approval for the creation of a national Horticulture Research Institute under the Council for Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR), arguing that Ghana lacked adequate research infrastructure in horticulture despite its growing economic potential.

A dedicated institute, it said, would drive innovation and open new export opportunities for fruits, vegetables, and tree crops.

The Union said the Farmers’ Day celebration must transcend annual ceremonies and inspire a deeper national commitment to modernising agriculture and improving the welfare of those who feed the country. “If we truly want to secure the future, we must secure the people who feed the nation,” it stated.

GAWU also paid special tribute to women in agriculture, promising continued advocacy for their safety, rights, and leadership within the agricultural value chain.