Government has announced plans to procure two rice mills this year as part of efforts to address growing frustration among rice farmers and strengthen Ghana’s food security system.

The CEO of the National Food Buffer Stock Company (NAFCO), George Abradu-Otoo, disclosed this during a courtesy call on the King and Overlord of Dagbon, Yaa Naa Abukari II, at Yendi.

He said one of the mills will be sited in the Northern Region to ease the burden on rice farmers who often struggle to process their paddy rice after harvest.

The intervention, he noted, forms part of broader measures to deal with grain glut challenges and improve food distribution systems across the country.

“I know the importance of this region to food security in the country. I will do anything possible to ensure the greater participation of farmers in all our dealings,” Mr Abradu-Otoo said.

He explained that the planned investment is expected to improve value addition, reduce post-harvest losses and enhance rice production efficiency in key farming areas.

The NAFCO CEO is currently on a five-day working visit across the Northern, Upper East, Upper West and Savannah Regions.

The tour includes visits to selected second-cycle institutions to assess food supply under the Free Senior High School programme and inspections of ongoing warehouse rehabilitation projects under the National Food Reserve programme.

As part of the visit, Mr Abradu-Otoo and his team toured Yendi Senior High School and Dabokpa Secondary Technical School, where school authorities expressed satisfaction with the consistency of food supply since 2025.

He also inspected warehouses in Yendi and Tamale to assess their readiness for the next phase of national food storage operations.

The Yaa Naa Abubakari II commended NAFCO’s role in supporting national food sufficiency, stressing the importance of the agency’s performance to both farmers and food security.

“When NAFCO fails, farmers suffer, and food security is compromised,” the Yaa Naa said.

Mr Abradu-Otoo also held separate discussions with the Northern Regional Minister, Ali Adolf John, and the Lamanshegu Naa, Naa Iddrisu Mohammed, in Tamale as part of his regional engagements.