You can’t feed Ghana on paper budgets

The Ministry of Food and Agriculture (MOFA) sits at the heart of Ghana’s food security, inflation management, rural employment and import substitution agenda.

In 2025, expectations were especially high following the launch of the Feed Ghana Programme (FGP)—a flagship intervention intended to reverse declining productivity, reduce food imports, and stabilise prices.

Yet, a closer examination of budget allocations versus actual releases and expenditures per MOFAs 2026 programme-based budget (PBB) estimates reveals a persistent decades-old structural fiscal challenge: ambitious policy is never matched by enough cash. 

Budgeted ambition: Record allocation

For the 2025 fiscal year, MOFA was allocated GH¢2.9 billion, reflecting the new government’s renewed emphasis on agriculture as a growth anchor. Of this amount, the Government of Ghana (GoG) funding accounted for GH¢1.6 billion (54%), donor funding GH¢1.3 billion (45%), and Internally Generated Funds (IGF) GH¢29.7 million (1%) 

The composition of the budget further underscored a development-oriented focus.

Goods and Services absorbed GH¢1.1 billion (39%), while Capital Expenditure (CAPEX) accounted for GH¢1.5 billion (53%), signalling intent to invest in productivity-enhancing interventions such as irrigation, mechanisation, post-harvest infrastructure, and livestock development. Compensation of Employees stood at GH¢226.6 million (8%), relatively modest given the scale of operational demands.

Reality MOFA cash releases

Despite this big budget allocation, actual releases tell a sobering story.

As of September 2025, total releases to MOFA amounted to just GH¢484.3 million, representing 17 per cent of the approved budget.

GoG releases were GH¢268.1 million (17% of GoG allocation), donor releases GH¢210.4 million (16% of Donor allocation), and IGF releases GH¢5.8 million (20% of IGF allocation). 

This pattern mirrors trends from previous years, where agriculture budgets are approved in full but cash releases remain severely constrained.

Crucially, low releases were most pronounced in CAPEX, undermining the very investments required to deliver medium-term productivity gains. 

Expenditure performance

Where funds were released, MOFA demonstrated relatively good expenditure performance.

Total expenditure as at September stood at GH¢378.1 million, equivalent to 78 per cent of overall total releases.

MOFA utilised 98 per cent of donor releases. IGF expenditure reached 71 per cent of its releases, while GoG expenditure stood at 63 per cent of its releases.

MOFA recorded mixed programme outputs in 2025.

Under the Feed Ghana Programme, the government targeted large-scale distribution of improved seeds and fertiliser.

However, by mid-year, only 2,000

MT of maize seed, 1,000 MT of rice seed, and 50,000 MT of fertiliser had been distributed - 13 per cent to 20 per cent of the target.

Livestock and poultry vaccinations in 2025 were 17.7 million, 44 per cent of the target of 40 million.

The story of the Ministries of Fisheries and Aquaculture Development (MOFAD) is no different.

By September 2025, GH¢81.4 million (31%) was released out of an approved budget of GH¢264.1 million.

Compensation absorbed GH¢26.5 million (76% of the budget), while capital expenditure received only GH¢7.0 million (4% of the budget), severely limiting programme implementation.

The Ministry of Finance itself had only 28 per cent of its 2025 budget allocation of GH¢3.6 billion released by September 2025.  
 

Budgets without cash, policy Illusions

MOFA and MOFAD’s 2025 budget performance exposes a familiar fault line in Ghana’s public finance management – ambitious budgets approved on paper, but chronically inadequate cash releases that ultimately slow, weaken or undermine programme delivery.

MOFA’s budget allocation in 2026 is GH¢1.3 billion, a 54 per cent reduction from the 2025 allocation of GH¢2.9 billion.

This adjustment is both necessary and rational.

There is little value in approving large budgets with small cash releases.MOFAD’s 2026 budget is GH¢428 million, a 62 per cent increase over the 2025 figure.

MOFA and MOFAD should receive at least 75 per cent of their approved 2026 budget to deliver on their programmes.

Without predictable and timely releases, even a leaner and more realistic budget will fail to deliver results.

Conclusion

Food security, improved agricultural productivity, and stable food prices are macroeconomic imperatives, not merely sectoral objectives.

They directly affect inflation, exchange rate stability, household welfare, and overall economic confidence. 

Ensuring adequate and timely financing for agriculture and the Feed Ghana Programme is, therefore, a macroeconomic necessity.