The government has marked a major milestone in its efforts to transform Ghana’s agricultural sector with the passing-out of 506 Feed Ghana Brigadiers at the Ghana Police Training School in Tesano, Accra.
At the graduation ceremony on Wednesday, Minister for Food and Agriculture, Eric Opoku, hailed the event as the “birth of a new national force for agricultural transformation,” highlighting the vital role the brigadiers are expected to play in boosting food security, job creation, and economic growth.
The new brigadiers, selected from graduates in agriculture and related fields, completed two weeks of intensive training, not focused on technical farming skills, but on discipline, teamwork, resilience, and readiness for field deployment. Minister Opoku explained that training at a police facility was intentional, designed to instill punctuality, accountability, and a strong sense of duty, qualities deemed essential for the success of the Feed Ghana Programme.
“These officers are already technically equipped. What they needed was the discipline and mindset required to deliver results on the ground,” he stated.
The Feed Ghana Programme, according to the minister, is a strategic national initiative aimed at increasing local food production, reducing dependence on imports, strengthening agribusiness, and creating jobs for the youth. District coordinators, he charged, must serve as a key link between policy and action, working closely with farmers, addressing local agricultural challenges, and ensuring accurate reporting and accountability.
“You have not been trained to sit in offices. You are expected to engage communities, support farmers, and solve real problems in the field,” Opoku emphasized.
Beyond public sector roles, the brigadiers will also provide advisory and technical services to private agribusinesses, households, and institutions. The programme has already attracted interest from the private sector, with several companies seeking deployment of brigadiers even before the official passing-out.
Minister Opoku also revealed plans to expand the initiative by recruiting and training more agricultural graduates to meet rising demand and strengthen its implementation nationwide. He cautioned coordinators against creating parallel structures and stressed the importance of working under the supervision of District Directors of Agriculture and collaborating with extension officers.
“The success of this programme will not be measured by speeches in Accra, but by real impact in the districts, more food production, more jobs, and stronger value chains,” he said.
The Feed Ghana Programme forms an integral part of the government’s broader agenda to reposition agriculture as a central driver of economic growth, national security, and industrialization. Minister Opoku concluded by urging the new brigadiers to serve with humility, discipline, integrity, and patriotism as they embark on their national assignment.
Source: Apexnewsgh.com