On the occasion of National Farmers’ Day, the Minority in Parliament has expressed deep concern over the hardships facing Ghanaian farmers, highlighting the abandonment of over 1 million metric tonnes of paddy rice valued at GH¢5 billion.

In a statement issued Friday, December 5, Minority Leader Hon. Alexander Afenyo-Markin condemned the government for failing to honour its September 2025 promise that the National Food Buffer Stock Company would purchase all locally produced rice and maize.

“These farmers continue to toil though the Government failed to honour its promise. Instead, they have been left stranded, their livelihoods jeopardised, and national food security undermined,” the statement said.

The Minority further criticised the influx of smuggled and expired rice, arguing that such imports render local farmers uncompetitive.

“Even as farmers battle unsold produce, cheap, expired, and smuggled rice floods the market, destroying local livelihoods,” the statement added.

The opposition called for the immediate purchase of unsold grain stock, subsidies for modern farming technologies, and urgent investment in storage, irrigation, and agro-processing to protect Ghana’s agricultural sector.