The Ministry of Food and Agriculture has issued an urgent directive to domestic farmers to intensify dry-season cultivation following a shock decision by the Burkinabè government to impose an immediate, nationwide ban on tomato exports.

The export halt, announced in a joint statement from Ouagadougou, prioritises Burkina Faso’s own processing industries and effectively revokes all Special Export Authorisations (ASE).

While a two-week window has been granted for existing permits, authorities warned that any seized consignments thereafter will be redirected to local factories under strict legal sanctions.

Reacting to the regional supply disruption on Thursday, 19th March 2026, Deputy Minister for Food and Agriculture John Dumelo characterised the ban as a catalyst for Ghanaian self-reliance.

While acknowledging that cross-border trade may not cease overnight, Mr. Dumelo expressed firm optimism that targeted investments could end Ghana's import dependency within the medium term.

“For us, going to Burkina Faso for tomatoes might not end immediately, but once they get encouraged, within three or four years, we should be self-sufficient when it comes to tomato production,” the Deputy Minister stated during an interview on Joy News.

The Ministry’s strategy hinges on expanding production during the traditionally difficult dry season. Mr. Dumelo revealed that recent tours of the Northern Region showed a positive shift in farming habits, with many producers already pivoting toward off-season crops.

He admitted that the specific motives behind the Burkinabè administration’s sudden move are still being studied but insisted that the domestic response must be proactive.

“I am yet to get the reason why the Burkina Faso government announced the ban and the details that come with it. But last year, I was in the Northern Region, and I urged them to produce tomatoes in the dry season. This dry season, I went back, and most of them are doing just that,” he noted.

To bridge the supply gap left by the ban, the government has pledged comprehensive support to local growers, ranging from technical assistance to essential inputs.

“I told them to let me know what they need to help them scale up production, especially in the next dry season… The government is committed to helping them to scale up production,” Dumelo added, reinforcing the state's mandate to stabilise the national food supply.

As the two-week grace period for existing traders expires, the focus now shifts to the Ghanaian heartlands to see if local output can rise fast enough to prevent a price surge in the markets.