Defence Minister, Dominic Nitiwul, has revealed that the government intends to deploy security personnel to all border towns across the country to prevent the smuggling of grains to neighbouring countries.
According to Mr. Nitiwul, the action is to protect the citizenry as food shortage looms due to dry spells.
“We will act well. We are deploying security personnel] across the borders, particularly in the northern part. We are also [deploying] to the east and the south. And so we will ask citizens to support the security agencies.
“If, for some reason, there is some unapproved route or approved route or somebody sees something that is going on that is not nice, please let us know so that we can act appropriately. It is for the good of all of us that we should not make our citizens suffer,” he revealed at a press briefing.
His statement follows the announcement of a total ban on grain export with immediate effect by the Minister of Food and Agriculture, Bryan Acheampong on Monday, August 27, 2024.
He explained that the ban aims to ensure food availability for the domestic market amid challenging weather conditions.
To mitigate the impact on farmers, Mr. Acheampong urged those with grain stock to contact district directors, aggregators, and the crops directorate across the country if they are interested in selling.
This measure is intended to support farmers and prevent them from suffering losses due to the export ban.
“With immediate effect, the government is placing a ban on the export of grains, including maize, rice, and soya beans, until the situation normalizes. This measure is essential to ensure the availability of these critical crops on the domestic market”.
“Any farmer with stock and interested in selling should contact our district directors across the country, our district aggregators, or the directorate of crops, Ministry of Agriculture. This is to ensure that farmers do not suffer adversely as a result of this ban,” he noted.
Story By Grace Tsotsoo Quaye
