By Iddi Yire
Accra, June 12, GNA – President John Dramani Mahama has announced that the Tema and the Takoradi Ports, will soon be operating as 24-Hour Ports when the Government’s 24-Hour Economy is operationalized.
He said the Ministry of Trade, Agribusiness and Industry and the Ministry of Transport were working together with the Ghana Revenue Authority, the Ghana Ports and Harbours Authority, the Ghana Shippers’ Council, and other stakeholders to soon declare the Tema and Takoradi ports as 24-hour ports.
“It will not only be about working longer hours. It will be about building infrastructure, energy, security, transport, and the digital platforms that enable round-the-clock agro-industrial activity. It is a strategy of hope rooted in efficiency and scale,” he said.
President Mahama made the disclosure when he formally opened the Ghana Horticulture Expo in Accra.
The three-day event on the theme “Innovate, Transform, sustain: Driving Growth in Ghana’s Horticultural Sector,” is being organised by the Federation of Associations of Ghanaian Exporters (FAGE).
President Mahama also announced that on July 1st, the 24-Hour Initiative Policy would be ready to go into operation.
This policy, he said, would provide the framework for continuous production, processing, and logistics in horticulture.
He noted that this allows fresh apple goods like pineapples, mangoes, chilies, and herbs to move swiftly from the field to ports to international shelves, minimizing losses and maximizing value.
He said Expo reflects the advocacy, and the Government’s response was anchored in action and commitment.
President Mahama assured FAGE, that it had his fullest support.
He said as President, he believes that the most urgent, inclusive, and transformative development must begin from the ground, from the farms, the greenhouses, the backyard gardens across Ghana.
“We must engineer an economic renewal that is productive, equitable, and sustainable. Agriculture, especially horticulture, is not an afterthought,” President Mahama said.
“It is central to our vision of national economic transformation and reconstruction.”
He noted that with year-round sunshine, fertile soils, waters, and hardworking farmers, Ghana was already a global leader in yam exports and a growing force in tropical fruits and vegetables, but potential must give way to performance and hope must yield results.
He said they must move from smallholder survival to value addition, international competitiveness, and youth-driven enterprise.
“If you have traveled across this country from Keta to Komenda, from Techiman to Tamale, you will have seen what I have seen.
“That is the silent labor of our farmers, cooperatives, our mothers hunched over tomato beds, and young people innovating with very little support,” President Mahama said.
“Yet many cannot access cold storage or find fair markets, and a single failed season can erase many years of effort. This is not merely a technical challenge. It is a moral imperative.
“And we must ask ourselves; can a nation prosper if the very hands that feed it remain its most neglected? Our answer today through this Expo and our policies is a resounding no.”
He said in line with this renewed commitment, he was pleased to reaffirm the Government’s flagship programme, Feed Ghana, from 2025 to 2028, which operationalizes the broader Agriculture for Economic Transformation agenda.
He said Feed Ghana was a bold response to rural unemployment, food insecurity, and over-dependence on imports.
He said for the agricultural sector, this includes the Vegetable Development Project, which had been christened the “yeredua,” which means ‘we are planting,’ to scale greenhouse cultivation and institutional competitive farming.
The second is Smart Agriculture and Farmer Support Centers to deliver mechanization services to farmers, irrigation, climate smart advisory, and digital extension services.
The third is Agri-Industrial Zones and Cold Chain Infrastructure to reduce post-harvest losses and enhance export readiness.
And the fourth is Agribusiness Youth Clinics to equip the next generation of our young people with the skills, capital, and mentorship for agribusiness success.
The President said these interventions were not promises, they were policy realities designed to make Ghana’s horticultural investment ready, inclusive, and globally competitive.
“We are also implementing a game-changing strategy, the 24-Hour Economy Initiative, to unlock Ghana’s productive potential across all sectors,” he stated.
Dr Prince Kofi Kludjeson, Executive Chairperson of Celltel Networkks Limited, who chaired the occasion, called for leveraging technology in smart farming to optimize various aspects of agriculture as part of efforts to boost efficiency and productivity in Ghana.
Mr Davis Narh Korboe, the President of FAGE, thanked President Mahama for keeping faith with FAGE and working tirelessly to promote the nation’s exports sector.
GNA