A Memorandum of Understanding for the scientific and technical collaboration for promoting and disseminating high-yielding has been signed.
The agreement, between the International Rice Research Institute and the Asian-African Consortium will also see the production of climate-smart, and healthier rice varieties to ensure food security.
The IRRI and AAC's MoU for rice production was worth $5Billion.
Ghana depends largely on imported rice to make up for the deficit in domestic rice supply.
According to Agriculture Research for sustainable Development, Ghana’s rice self-sufficiency ratio declined from 38% in 1999 to 24% in 2006 and increased to about 43% in 2020.
Hence the need for food and agriculture sector stakeholders to ensure increased and sustained domestic production of good quality rice for food security, import substitution and savings in foreign exchange.
It was based on this backdrop that an MoU had been signed between the International Rice Research Institute and the Asian African Consortium.
Experts said more efforts are needed to make the domestic rice value chain competitive that would not only lead to contributing to the growth and structural transformation of the economy.
They also noted that it will also be an important vehicle to mitigate and solve developmental challenges, such as poverty and create more jobs for the youth.
Story by: Joshua Kwabena Smith