A farmer and agricultural entrepreneur has stressed the need for parties elected to form government in the country to appoint people with the right knowledge and insight to head the agricultural ministry.

Mr Gideon Seidu, the Chief Executive of Aboboyaa Enterprise in Kumasi, said agricultural production had over the years suffered major setbacks due to leadership deficiencies in the Ministry of Food and Agriculture.

Speaking to the Ghana News Agency in Kumasi, he said governments over the years, had paid lip service to agriculture making the sector a challenging one and unattractive for investment.

Mr Seidu said most farmers were poor because they were unable to derive maximum benefits from their investments.

He said it was important that any person who was elected as President of Ghana appointed people that had deeper insight in agriculture and abreast with challenges of farmers and agricultural production.

Mr Seidu said it was not enough to appoint “people who have long degrees and certificates to manage the agricultural sector”.

The sector, according to him, required people with practical and innovative knowledge and skills in agriculture to work in close collaboration with farmers and all interest groups to navigate through the value chain to identify all the challenges and find solutions to them.

Mr Seidu suggested the involvement of industrious and practical farmers, such as the national best farmers, in policy development and implementation in the agricultural sector.

This, according to him would ensure that their inputs were incorporated in decisions affecting the sector.