Ghana Introduces Drone Technology In Agriculture

Ghana has stepped up efforts to modernise agriculture with the adoption of drone technology under the Feed Ghana Program.

This move is expected to expedite the country’s transition to precision farming, boost output, and reduce production costs.

Minister of Food and Agriculture Eric Opoku made this announcement saying that the Peasant Farmers Association of Ghana (PFAG) would receive 40,000 bags of inorganic fertiliser along with five sets of agricultural drones to help farmers during the major planting season in northern Ghana and the upcoming minor season in the south.

In a ceremony to hand over the inputs, Mr. Opoku said the drones were a useful and symbolic investment in the future of Ghanaian agriculture.

“This is one of the most important aspects of today’s event,” he said. “The presentation of these drones is both practical and symbolic,” he said. 

The Minister said the drones will help farmers and groups of farmers to monitor fields, to identify pests and diseases at an early stage, stress in crops, map farms, assess the performance of crops and to improve decision-making at the farm level.

He said the technology marked a major shift from traditional farming practices to a more data-driven agriculture output.

“It marks a bold shift in Ghana’s agricultural journey, from guesswork to data, from traditional agricultural production practices to precision production, from low productivity to smart farming,” he stated.

The Minister noted that the introduction of drone technology would aid farmers properly manage large-scale operations more efficiently by enabling them to reduce waste, improve the use of resources, and identify issues before they become more serious.