The Greater Accra Poultry Farmers Association of Ghana, GAPFA, says it expects some allocations to be made in the upcoming mid-year budget review later this month, to address the current challenges facing the sector.
The industry which employs thousands of people through the value chain is struggling to survive, owing to a shortage of feed for the birds as well as the recent outbreak of bird flu which has killed over ten thousand birds.
According to the Association, it has not received adequate financial support from the government over the years.
In an interview with Citi Business News, President of the Greater Accra Poultry Framers Association of Ghana, Michael Nyarko- Ampem said the announcement of a loan facility or some other financial relief in the budget will be highly welcome.
“We are asking that, for all what we are going through which includes the maize crises and the bird flu, there should be some facilities, some loans we can access and restock to stabilize us so that we can continue to keep the workers in place and continue to expand. It will also enable us to compete favorably because if the interest rate is at 23% it’s difficult to compete with someone who is taking a loan at say 3% or 10%. So, we are looking that government uses some of these in the budget, specifically for poultry farmers so that we can have access to some of these soft funds, : he said.
Already the Greater Accra Poultry Farmers Association (GAPFA), has stated that Ghana’s poultry industry risks collapse if the government fails to swiftly deal with recent challenges of feed for poultry.
This comes as poultry farmers across the country currently are faced with scarcity and high cost of maize and other ingredients needed for the industry.