Deputy Minister for Food and Agriculture John Dumelo has challenged Ghanaians living abroad to pool their resources to transform the country’s agricultural sector, saying a modest contribution from just 10,000 people could generate enough capital to finance critical farming interventions.
Addressing the launch of the Region 17 initiative in Washington, D.C., Mr. Dumelo said collective diaspora investment could become a powerful driver of Ghana’s agricultural transformation and economic growth.
“If 10,000 Ghanaians can even contribute just $70, you can come up to $700,000, which is enough to buy a few tractors, to empower a few women, a few female farmers in Ghana, and to make sure that Ghana moves forward in the right direction,” he said.
He described Region 17 as an important platform for mobilising the financial resources and expertise of Ghanaians abroad into tangible development projects, particularly in agriculture, which he said remains central to Ghana’s economic transformation.
According to the Deputy Minister, improving agricultural productivity is essential to tackling food inflation and strengthening the country’s economy, making diaspora investment in the sector more critical than ever.
Executive Director of African Diaspora Region 17, Maabena Ohene Kena Webb, also called for a shift in how Ghana engages its citizens abroad, urging policymakers to look beyond remittances and create structures that encourage long-term investment.
She said the Ghanaian diaspora possesses enormous financial, entrepreneurial and professional resources that, if supported by the right policies and sustained confidence, could be channelled into infrastructure, businesses, exports and other productive sectors.
According to Ms. Webb, Region 17 offers an opportunity to move “from diaspora remittances to diaspora investment, from financial support to strategic partnership, and from individual contributions to coordinated national development.”
The Region 17 initiative was launched to provide a structured platform for mobilising the intellectual, professional, entrepreneurial, financial and cultural resources of Ghanaians abroad in support of national development.
Source: www.kumasimail.com
