The Campaign Coordinator for Integrated Social Development Centre (ISODEC), Dr Steve Manteaw, has called on government to take proactive interventions in order to restore the falling conditions of the poor in the society.
He suggested that government could do this by using the potentials of the petroleum sector and leverage them to improve agricultural production.
Dr Manteaw, who is also Chairman for Civil Society Platform on Oil and Gas, said government has not done enough over the years to reduce poverty and provide decent and quality jobs, adding that government needs to pay urgent attention to the development challenges facing the agricultural sector.
“Inequality is a big threat to social stability and therefore, if government refuses to recognise the growing gap between the rich and poor, then government runs the risk of undermining the whole democratic process in the country,” he said.
According to him, if government does not address the situation immediately, it might get to a point where the poor could rise against the rich.
Mr Manteaw said Ghana could restore agricultural input subsidies on fertilizer by producing its own fertilizer and other agro-chemicals for the agricultural sector using the gas resources because gas enables the production of cheaper energy.
This, he said, would help the government to reduce the cost of agricultural production in Ghana.
Mrs Nancy Alexander, Founder of Heinrech Boel Foundation Ghana, called on government to provide support for small scale peasant farmers just as it did for cash crop farmers such as cocoa farmers, who have continuously received massive support from government.
Source: GNA