Ghana needs forward-thinking leaders to boost agric sector – Professor Roger Kanton

A former Research Scientist of the Savannah Agricultural Research Institute (SARI) of the Council for Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR); Professor Roger Kanton is calling for a forward-thinking policy approach in boosting the country's agriculture sector.

He said Ghana's agricultural sector will continue to struggle if leadership continues to take reactionary measures.

Making his point at the Citi Business Festival forum on Rediscovering the Agribusiness Goldmine on Citi TV, Professor Roger Kanton said, “no country owes the other anything. Why should the Ukraine-Russian war affect us? I don’t think it makes sense. It should rather be a blessing to us. The military has very catchy logos. I saw one recently, it read challenges present opportunities. Nkrumah constructed the Tema Oil Refinery when oil had not been discovered in the country. That is forward-thinking. We have found oil, is it enough to sell it out cheaply? It could actually create jobs here and produce fertilizer.”

“The richest black man has put up a fertilizer plant in Lagos that can produce about 3.5 metric tonnes of urea, which is key for the Nigerian agricultural sector. They only sell the surplus out. We can't continue to explore reactionary approaches to problems,” he added.

He said the country has all it takes for a robust agricultural economy.

“We are better off than most countries. We have critical minds and the needed resources. We only need proactive leadership to advance this,” he added.

Other panellists were William Nettey- Head of Agribusiness ABSA, Kwasi Korboe – CEO of GIRSAL, and Catherine Krobo Edusei, Founder & CEO of Eden Tree.

The Citi Business Festival is an extensive program of business events and on-air activities providing inspiration, business ideas, and information to persons who are starting, building, or growing their businesses.

On-air series airs on the Citi Breakfast Show on 97.3 Citi FM every weekday.

For the 2022 edition, the themes outlined during the period were as follows:

Week 1: Re-imagining the Digital Economy Week 2: Resetting your SME after COVID-19 Week 3: The Ghana Opportunity Week 4: Consumer Markets Week 5: Agribusiness ABSA Bank is the main sponsor of the Citi Business Festival 2022 and supported by MTN Momo and MTN Business, IT Consortium and the Ghana Investment Promotion Centre (GIPC), and GIRSAL.

---citinewsroom