President John Dramani Mahama has unveiled an ambitious blueprint to transform Ghana into a major exporter of processed tree crop products, declaring an end to the long-standing practice of shipping unprocessed cashew, shea, and rubber abroad while reimporting finished goods at inflated prices.
Opening the maiden Ghana Tree Crops Investment Summit in Accra on Tuesday, February 17, President Mahama reaffirmed his administration’s commitment to expanding Ghana’s export base and leveraging the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) for industrial growth. The four-day summit, running through February 20 at the Accra International Conference Centre, operates under the theme “Sustainable Growth Through Tree Crop Investments: Resetting and Building Ghana’s Green Economy.”
The President outlined a national blueprint targeting twelve billion dollars in annual tree crop export earnings by 2035, anchored by a commitment to process between 50 and 60 percent of cashew, shea, and rubber output domestically each year. “We cannot continue to export raw materials and import finished goods at a premium. Value addition must happen here at home,” he said.
Central to the plan is a 500 million dollar investment to develop 100,000 hectares of oil palm plantations under the National Integrated Oil Palm Development Policy for 2026 to 2032, projected to create 250,000 direct jobs across farming, processing, logistics, and allied services. The President described oil palm as “red gold” and called on investors to seize opportunities in the sector without delay.
Mahama also confirmed the reactivation of the 200 million dollar Ghana Tree Crop Diversification Project, financed by the World Bank, which will distribute improved seedlings to farmers and provide matching grants to small and medium-scale enterprises engaged in processing and value addition, supporting more than 30,000 farmers in the process.
The Tree Crops Development Authority (TCDA), which is coordinating the summit, is targeting 600 million dollars in total investment commitments across six strategic value chains: cashew, oil palm, rubber, coconut, shea, and mango. The TCDA has projected that each value chain alone could generate up to two billion dollars in annual export revenue by 2030 if adequate investment and processing capacity are mobilised.
Invoking an Akan proverb to rally investors, Mahama declared: “Today, Ghana is climbing a good tree — the tree crop sector. We invite all Ghanaians and our partners to climb this tree with us.”
The President stressed that government policies must translate into tangible results for farmers and workers, not merely policy documents. “Our farmers must see results, not paperwork,” he said, adding that agriculture must be modern, profitable, and attractive to young people.
