"The rearing for food and jobs is a good initiative but we need to look at the livestock production extension, do we have the right and appropriate extension support to deal with the issues.

Veterinary services for a long time now have been understaffed, they have no equipment to move around; there is the need for government in these early days of the Rearing for Food and Jobs programme to invest in animal production extension", he said.

Speaking in an interview with the Ghana News Agency in Wa, Mr Banuoku said government must put in place the right institutions to ensure that the RFJ programme succeeded and this should include grazing banks and available water sources for livestock and veterinary services among others.

Available statistics indicate that 77, 871 metric tons of livestock was produced Ghana in 2018, accounting for on 19 per cent, while the remaining 81 per cent was imported with scarce foreign exchange resources to meet local demand.

President Akuffo-Addo, on Monday, 24th June 2019 launched the Rearing for Food and Jobs programme which is aimed at improving livestock rearing and protein consumption and reducing the importation of meat into the country.

Mr Banuoko said investment in the programme should go beyond procuring and distributing animals to farmers but should also ensure that veterinary services were well equipped to deal with the outbreak of any disease.

On access to market, he said, government should provide market for the livestock in the country in order to prevent glut.

"Government should begin to look at the marketing opportunities, because if we produce so much what happens is that there is going to be a glut, and once there is a glut, there is competition on price, and once there is a competition, it beats the price down", he said.

Mr Banuoku said the reduction in price would affect recovery of investment made in the production.