The Government Statistician, Dr. Alhassan Iddrisu, has called for urgent investment in agricultural infrastructure to sustain Ghana’s recent progress in reducing food inflation, which has helped bring the country’s overall inflation rate into single digits for the first time in four years.

His comments follow the latest data from the Ghana Statistical Service (GSS) showing that inflation dropped to 9.4% in September, down from 11.5% in August.

The decline was largely attributed to easing food prices, with food inflation falling to 11%, compared to 14.8% the previous month.

Speaking on Channel One TV on Wednesday, October 8, Dr. Iddrisu emphasised the need to strengthen irrigation systems, improve food storage facilities, and enhance transport networks to ensure the sustainability of stable food prices.

“To lock in the progress we have seen in food inflation, especially for staples like yam, cassava, rice, and vegetables, we must invest in irrigation to enable year-round farming and reduce dependence on rainfall,” he stated.

Dr. Iddrisu also underscored the importance of tackling long-standing challenges in post-harvest management.

“We need to improve cold chain and dry storage systems to minimise post-harvest losses, particularly for perishables such as tomatoes, onions, peppers, okro, and garden eggs,” he said.

He further highlighted that reliable transport infrastructure remains critical to maintaining an efficient supply chain and ensuring food reaches markets across the country on time.

“To sustain low inflation, we must ensure we invest in dependable transport networks to support distribution and market access,” he added.