2026 budget: Govt to equip 50 districts with over 4k machines

The Minister for Finance, Dr Cassiel Ato Forson, has announced that the government will roll out the Farmer Service Centres initiative to strengthen mechanisation and modernise agriculture across the country.

Presenting the 2026 Budget Statement and Economic Policy to Parliament on Thursday, November 13, he said the government will provide over 4,000 units of agricultural machinery to 50 selected agricultural districts to enhance productivity, reduce manual labour, and improve efficiency along the agricultural value chain.

The machinery package includes 660 tractors, 300 tractor trailers, 200 mini tractors, 200 mini tractor trailers, 200 mini tractor tillers, 200 mini tractor cultivators, 200 mini tractor ploughs, 200 mini tractor harrows, 200 mini tractor cutter bars, 200 mini tractor mowers, 460 three-disc ploughs, 200 four-disc ploughs, 330 sixteen-disc harrows, and several other modern equipment.

Additionally, farmers will benefit from 100 1,000kg mineral fertilizer spreaders, 100 four-row precision seed drills, 100 six-row precision seed drills, 100 thirty-two-row pneumatic seed drills, 300 800-litre boom sprayers, 50 combine harvesters, 50 maize headers for combine harvesters, and 25 soy headers.

Dr Forson said the initiative reflects government’s commitment to equipping farmers with the tools and technology needed to increase yields and ensure national food security.

“Our farmers have always carried Ghana on their shoulders. With these investments, we are returning the favour — giving them the tools, technology, and support to carry the nation into a future of food security and prosperity,” he stated.

He added that the transformation of the agricultural sector has already begun, noting that “agriculture is not just an occupation; it is the engine of Ghana’s renewal.”

In addition to the machinery support, Dr Forson announced that President John Dramani Mahama has directed the immediate release of GH¢200 million to the National Food Buffer Stock Company to purchase and store excess food resulting from this year’s food glut. The measure, he said, is aimed at protecting the investments and incomes of food crop and poultry farmers across the country.

The Finance Minister emphasised that the Farmer Service Centres initiative, along with the government’s broader agricultural investments, forms part of a comprehensive strategy to make Ghana self-sufficient in food production, create jobs, and drive economic transformation through agribusiness.