The International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD) has reaffirmed its commitment to overhaul Ghana’s agricultural sector, partnering with the nation’s government and the World Bank to launch the “Ghana AgriConnect Compact.” The flagship initiative aims to pivot the West African nation toward a private sector-led model to drive inclusive economic growth, boost climate resilience, and catalyze job creation across rural communities.
Agriculture serves as a primary pillar of Ghana’s economy, generating approximately 22% of its gross domestic product (GDP) and 24% of its export earnings. The sector also employs roughly 38% of the country’s workforce. Despite its scale, the industry remains bogged down by deep structural bottlenecks, including low productivity, severe climate variability, weak market integration, and a chronic lack of financing for smallholder farmers and rural enterprises.
The newly unveiled Compact targets aggressive, systemic transformation across critical commodity value chains. Efforts will be concentrated on cocoa, oil palm, rice, maize, and poultry, alongside targeted expansions into fisheries, forestry, and alternative tree crops. By the turn of the decade, project coordinators estimate the initiative will bolster food and nutrition security for nearly three million people.
Furthermore, the scale-up aims to generate more than 2.6 million jobs by 2030, distributed across production, processing, aggregation, and marketing channels.
“Through AgriConnect, IFAD is deepening its commitment to end rural poverty and build resilient, inclusive food systems in Ghana,” said Lakshmi Moola, IFAD Country Director for Ghana. “Together with partners, we are scaling investments that deliver jobs, opportunity, and lasting impact for rural communities.”
The AgriConnect rollout directly builds upon IFAD’s existing capital footprint in Ghana. The organization’s current portfolio features the Promoting Rural Opportunities, Sustainable Profits and Environmental Resilience (PROSPER) programme, alongside the Affordable Agricultural Financing for Resilient Rural Development (AAFORD) project.
Looking ahead, IFAD is also slated to expand its engagement by co-financing the World Bank’s regional Food Systems Resilience Programme. The combined interventions underscore a long-term development strategy focused on strengthening farmer organisations, unlocking rural credit markets, and tightening supply chain linkages to support structural economic transformation.
