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The National Service Authority (NSA), in collaboration with Agri-Impact Limited, has outlined plans to deploy service personnel into agribusiness.
This forms part of a wider strategy to cut the country’s over $1 billion annual food import bill and create sustainable employment for young people.
It is intended to transform national service from routine office postings into a platform that equips graduates with practical skills, while contributing directly to food production and import substitution.
Speaking at the Youth Agri-business professional programme (YAPP), last Friday, the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of Agri-Impact, Daniel Fahene Acquaye, said the initiative, under the Harnessing Agribusiness Opportunities for Productivity and Impact (HAPI) programme, is designed to channel the energies of young graduates into productive ventures across the agricultural sector.
He explained that instead of restricting national service personnel to clerical roles, the programme would place them in areas where they would gain hands-on experience in modern farming techniques, marketing, safeguarding and digital solutions.
“National service should not be seen as punishment. If we intentionally deploy just 20,000 or 30,000 young people every year into agribusiness, we will see rising food production and a reduction in imports,” he said.
Mr Acquaye emphasised that the deployment of personnel should be targeted at critical value chains where Ghana continued to rely heavily on imports, such as rice, tomatoes and pork.
He said that the country spent over $1 billion annually on food imports, a figure that could be significantly reduced if service personnel were deliberately placed in these sectors with proper training and resources.
“If national service personnel are deployed into these sectors with the right support, they will contribute to import substitution, improve productivity and align with national food security goals,” he said.
The Director of the NSA, Ruth Seddor, highlighted the authority’s efforts to expand production in poultry and maize to support food security.
Ms Seddor explained that the authority was working to modernise its farms to attract young people into agriculture, stressing that farming was no longer for the aged but for a new generation of entrepreneurs ready to change the status quo.
“Our vision is to make agriculture attractive to the modern young man and woman who wants to change the status quo, earn income and contribute to national development,” she said.
She added that the partnership with Agri-Impact was expected to absorb about 50,000 service personnel annually into agribusiness activities, ranging from crop production and poultry farming to agro-processing and distribution.
According to her, this will provide women with affordable access to poultry production and help them establish small-scale agribusinesses
“This is not just about feeding Ghana but also creating entrepreneurial spirit among our young people,” she said.
Ms Seddor reaffirmed the NSA commitment to transforming national service into a tool that would drive food security, import substitution and youth employment.
