EPAR Research Brief #77
Tue, 11/03/2009
Authors: 
Jon Armah
Mary Kay Gugerty
Abstract: 

Agriculture is the most important sector in the Ghanaian economy. In 2008, it accounted for over 32 percent of GDP and employed over half of the labor force. Economic development in Ghana has historically been dependent on the success of agriculture, particularly the main export crop, cocoa. Despite the sector’s importance, Ghanaian farmers have one of the lowest fertilizer application rates in Sub-Saharan Africa. The combination of a dominant agricultural sector, nutrient-poor soils, low fertilizer use among smallholder farmers, and the absence of locally produced inorganic fertilizers has prompted the government of Ghana (GoG) to intervene in the fertilizer market. This literature review examines the state of agriculture in Ghana, the history of the fertilizer market, and the current market structure. We find that the GoG has been a major actor in the inorganic fertilizer market over the past 50 years, from exercising total control of the domestic supply chain in the 1960s and 1970s to more indirect interventions in later years. In recent years, agricultural growth has averaged 5.5 percent as compared to 5.2 percent growth in the rest of the economy.  However, most of this growth has been due to land expansion and favorable weather conditions rather than increased productivity.  Increased fertilizer use among smallholder farmers has the potential to contribute to future agricultural growth and continued economic success.

EPAR’s Political Economy of Fertilizer Policy series provides a history of government intervention in the fertilizer markets of eight Sub-Saharan African countries: Côte d’Ivoire, Ghana, Kenya, Malawi, Mozambique, Nigeria, Senegal, and Tanzania. The briefs focus on details of present and past voucher programs, input subsidies, tariffs in the fertilizer sector, and the political context of these policies. The briefs illustrate these policies’ effect on key domestic crops and focus on the strengths and weaknesses of current market structure. Fertilizer policy in SSA has been extremely dynamic over the last fifty years, swinging from enormous levels of intervention in the 1960s and 70s to liberalization of markets of the 1980s and 1990s. More recently, intervention has become more moderate, focusing on “market smart” subsidies and support.

See also:

EPAR Research Brief #42: Political Economy of Fertilizer Policy in Nigeria

EPAR Research Brief #50: Political Economy of Fertilizer Policy in Sub-Saharan Africa: Executive Summary

EPAR Research Brief #75: Political Economy of Fertilizer Policy in Tanzania

EPAR Research Brief #76: Political Economy of Fertilizer Policy in Mozambique

EPAR Research Brief #78: Political Economy of Fertilizer Policy in Côte d’Ivoire

EPAR Research Brief #79: Political Economy of Fertilizer Policy in Kenya

EPAR Research Brief #80: Political Economy of Fertilizer Policy in Senegal

EPAR Research Brief #81: Political Economy of Fertilizer Policy in Malawi

 

Type of Research: 
Literature Review
Research Topic Category: 
Sustainable Agriculture & Rural Livelihoods
Agricultural Inputs & Farm Management
Political Economy & Governance
Population(s): 
Countries/Governments
Smallholder Farmers
Geographic focus: 
West Africa Region and Selected Countries
Dataset(s): 
FAOSTAT
Other Datasets

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