Upper West Minister pushes local processing to address maize glut
19th January 2026
The Upper West Regional Minister, Charles Lwanga Puozuing, has raised serious concern over the glut of farm produce in the region, particularly maize, and is advocating increased local processing as a long-term solution.
According to him, one major intervention underway is the facilitation of a credit facility from the Ghana EXIM Bank to support Kedan Limited, a grains processing factory located in Tumu in the Sissala East Municipality, to expand its operations and absorb excess maize produced by farmers.
He explained that with adequately resourced processing factories, farmers would no longer struggle to find buyers for their produce. As part of efforts to boost local agro-processing, he said he had personally led initiatives to ensure Kedan Limited secured financing from EXIM Bank, adding that the process had reached an advanced stage, awaiting final approval from the Bank’s Board.
Mr Puozuing made these remarks in Wa during a press soirée held as part of his plan to sustain regular media engagements aimed at showcasing the region’s development potential, challenges and investment opportunities.
His intervention follows persistent concerns from stakeholders in the Sissala area, including the Council of Sissala Paramount Chiefs and the Sissala Union, over the lack of a reliable market for maize. Reports from the area indicate that a 100kg bag of maize currently sells for about GH₵350.
In an attempt to address falling produce prices nationwide, the Government in 2025 released GH₵100 million to the National Food Buffer Stock Company (NAFCO) to purchase excess farm produce. However, stakeholders in the Sissala area say they have not seen any Buffer Stock officials in the locality to buy maize.
While the Council of Sissala Paramount Chiefs welcomed the government’s plan to buy maize at GH₵450 per 100kg bag, it noted in a recent communiqué that no Buffer Stock buyers had been identified in the area.
Reacting to the issue, Mr Puozuing clarified that NAFCO officers stationed in the region were not authorised to directly buy produce from farmers. Their mandate, he said, was limited to supervising and regulating the movement of food items to warehouses and schools where contracted suppliers operate.
As a result, the absence of authorised NAFCO buyers has denied farmers in the Upper West Region the opportunity to benefit from the government’s food purchasing programme. The Minister therefore appealed to the media to intensify advocacy to draw the attention of key stakeholders, including NAFCO, to the maize glut in the region.
He further disclosed that Kedan Limited had submitted a bid to take over a factory in Funsi in the Wa East District to further expand grain processing capacity in the region.
According to the Minister, expanding Kedan’s operations would help curb post-harvest losses, stabilise maize prices, improve farmers’ incomes and motivate more young people to engage in farming, particularly maize production.