The Ghana Institution of Engineering (GhIE) has called on the government to place engineering at the centre of agricultural policy in order to strengthen Ghana’s food systems and address persistent food security challenges.

The call was made at GhIE's 56th Annual General Meeting and Engineering Conference held in Ho under the theme “Engineering the Food Security and Sustainable Agriculture Value Chain.”

The institution noted that food security remains one of the most critical challenges confronting the nation, with the agricultural sector facing persistent structural weaknesses, including post-harvest losses, weak infrastructure in storage, transport, and processing, and rising climate variability affecting production.

President of GhIE, Ing. Ludwig Annang Hesse, said engineering plays a central role in linking production systems to markets and national development outcomes.

“Engineering is the enabler that connects production to markets, innovation to impact, and policy to measurable results,” he stated.

He added that the challenges facing the sector are systemic and require coordinated engineering interventions.

“These are not isolated agricultural problems; they are systemic challenges that require deliberate and coordinated engineering solutions,” he stated.

He further stressed that engineering must be fully integrated into agriculture and not treated as a support function.

“For too long, engineering has been treated as a support function within agriculture. That approach is no longer sufficient,” he stated.

GhIE said stronger investment in irrigation, mechanisation, renewable energy systems, and agro-processing is critical to improving productivity and strengthening food security.