For NABCO beneficiaries: 294,000 jobs could have been created by investing in rice production—Awuah-Darko

For NABCO beneficiaries: 294,000 jobs could have been created by investing in rice production—Awuah-Darko

According to Kwame Awuah-Darko, a prominent member of the National Democratic Congress (NDC), money intended for the National Builders’ Corps (NABCO) program would have been better spent on agriculture, particularly on large-scale rice production, in order to provide Ghanaian youth with long-term job opportunities.

Over 100,000 people have benefited from NABCO since its founding, Mr. Awuah-Darko noted, with everyone receiving a GHC 700 monthly allowance. This has cost the government almost GHC 2.5 billion over the last three years.

He maintained that these funds could have been used to create long-term jobs and lessen Ghana’s dependency on rice imports if they had been used to buy land and train young people to grow rice.

NABCO was established to solve graduate unemployment, but it experienced several obstacles, such as delayed allowance payments, which raised questions about its viability and efficacy.

The NDC has created a strategic plan to prioritise agriculture as a major driver of economic growth and job creation, according to Awuah-Darko, who made this announcement in an interview with Channel One News.

The plan, which is a key component of the NDC’s 2024 manifesto, intends to position agriculture as a development accelerator by reducing the nation’s reliance on imported rice and creating over 200,000 sustainable jobs.

“Rice production alone might have grown 42,000 acres of rice crops with the money spent on NABCO trainees. This strategy would have produced more than 200,000 long-term jobs if it had been adopted from the beginning,” he said.

He went on to say, “In contrast to the NPP’s history of wasteful spending, the NDC has continuously shown superior management of the Ghanaian economy through investments in productive sectors.”

Making rice farming a priority in order to create jobs and ensure food security

Mr. Awuah-Darko, who is also a farmer, stressed the significance of extending irrigation systems in rice-producing regions like the Northern, Volta, and Ashanti regions as part of the NDC’s agricultural plan.

Along with providing smallholder farmers with affordable loans and subsidies to help them access seeds, fertiliser, and other essential resources to expand their operations, he also emphasised the need for investments in modern farming equipment to increase productivity and efficiency for large-scale rice cultivation.

In order to guarantee that locally produced rice satisfies international standards and increase both domestic and export sales, he further emphasised the necessity of establishing rice mills and packaging facilities.

The NDC’s proposed 24-Hour Economy policy, which seeks to maximise production across a range of industries, including agriculture, would be in line with these objectives, Mr. Awuah-Darko emphasised.

Agriculture and the Economy at All Hours

In order to expand agricultural activities beyond farming, the 24-hour economy policy integrates marketing, packaging, and processing into an ongoing operating cycle.

Mr. Awuah-Darko claims that this strategy will make it easier to conduct agro-industrial activities around-the-clock, set up logistics centres to guarantee the effective delivery of agricultural products across the country, and construct night markets in urban and peri-urban regions to increase trade and lower post-harvest losses.

It will also improve electrification in rural areas to help agro-industrial operations.

“The 24-Hour Economy makes sure that farming is just one aspect of agriculture. It makes it possible for marketing, packaging, and processing to run continuously, creating jobs all down the supply chain,” he said.

Together with its 24-Hour Economy effort, the NDC’s strategic investment in rice production is positioned as a game-changing strategy to combat unemployment, enhance food security, and spur economic growth in Ghana.