African Governments Failing 10% Agriculture Funding Pledge — Eric Opoku Warns at Inter‑Parliamentary Conference

The Minister for Food and Agriculture, Eric Opoku, has raised serious concerns over the persistent failure of many African governments to honour their long‑standing commitment to allocate at least 10 per cent of national budgets to agriculture and rural development.

Addressing the 4th Inter‑Parliamentary Conference on Family, Sovereignty and Values on Thursday, June 4, the Minister described the situation as a major setback to Africa’s economic transformation agenda. He noted that despite the Maputo (2003) and Kampala Declarations, which reaffirmed the 10 per cent target, several countries still invest shockingly little in the sector.

According to him, evidence across the continent shows that some governments allocate less than one per cent of their national budgets to agriculture, while others commit only two to three per cent—levels he described as grossly inadequate for a sector that employs the majority of Africa’s workforce.

He stressed that without meaningful investment, African nations cannot effectively fight poverty, boost productivity, or unlock the continent’s vast agricultural potential.

Opoku urged parliamentarians across Africa to intensify oversight and ensure that executive promises translate into real budgetary commitments and measurable development outcomes.

“Parliaments have a constitutional responsibility to exercise oversight over public expenditure and government policy implementation. They must hold the executive accountable and ensure that their promises made to African citizens are translated into concrete budgetary commitments and measurable outcomes,” he said.

He added that lawmakers must demand answers whenever agricultural allocations fall below agreed continental targets and insist that agriculture receives the resources required to drive national development.

---CitiNewsRoom