Government says it will soon roll out solar-powered irrigation pumps as part of efforts to enhance agricultural productivity.

Minister for Energy and Green Transition, John Jinapor, disclosed this at the seventh meeting of the International Solar Alliance regional committee for Africa.

Addressing the media, the minister explained that the initiative is expected to reduce reliance on rain-fed farming and improve resilience in the agriculture sector.

“I have had very good fruitful discussions with the Director General [of the International Solar Alliance], and immediately, what we want to set forth is to work to deploy solar irrigation pumps across the country.

“For some part of the country, for close to like six months during the dry season, because our farmers depend on rain-fed agriculture, they virtually have nothing to do. ”

“India has pioneered it and we want to learn from them. They have agreed that they will work and collaborate with us so that we can install these solar pumps. By installing these solar pumps, what will happen is Ghanaians will be able to engage in productive all year round farming. We have signed some MoUs,” he said.

Meanwhile, Director-General of the International Solar Alliance, Ashish Khanna, announced a $200 million facility to accelerate the adoption of solar solutions across Africa.

“We were proud and privileged to have 19 ministers from African countries and 39 countries represented. They heard and ratified the strategy of the International Solar Alliance of moving from ambition to action by having the support of an African solar facility which is a catalytic finance of $200 million with first $75 million to be operationalized before the end of 2025.

“It will leverage investments of more than $800 million of decentralized renewable energy in private sector of Africa starting with the first fund in Nigeria,” he detailed.

At the seventh meeting of the ISA Regional Committee for the Africa Region, the Ministerial Session on the African Solar Facility (ASF) focused on mobilizing domestic finance to scale solar deployment. The ASF, a blended catalytic finance initiative, has been designed to de-risk solar investments, mobilize local resources, and attract private capital.

Ministers and partners shared perspectives on an ecosytem approach that ensures bankability of projects, emphasizing transparent procurement, secure payment systems, and targeted equity support. Discussions also highlighted the role of public-private collaboration and catalytic finance in accelerating large-scale deployment.

The session highlighted leveraging local financial systems to support renewable energy investment, reinforcing public-private partnerships for project implementation and using catalytic finance to crowd in private sector resources.

The discussions concluded that the ASF will serve as a key instrument for scalable, sustainable, and bankable solar projects, advancing ISA’s focus on action-oriented, country-led implementation.