Yaw Osafo-Maafo, a former senior minister, bemoaned Ghana's heavy reliance on imports.

Importing rice cost Ghana close to $1.35 billion in 2018.

The expansion of the private sector, according to Osafo-Maafo, is crucial because government development of the rice industry is impossible.

As with the development of cocoa, "it will depend on individual farmers to produce rice," he said.

Senior Minister, Yaw Osafo-Maafo has lamented over Ghana spending US$1.35 billion last year on rice importation alone.

According to him, foreign exchange that could be used on machinery to modernize the economy was spent on rice although rice could be grown in every part of the country.

Osafo-Maafo made this known yesterday in Accra speaking at the Ghana Beyond Aid (GBA) committee’s stakeholder consultation with the leadership of faith-based organizations (FBOs).

In a presentation on the GBA charter document, he said there was some part of the Northern Region which could grow more than enough rice to feed West Africa with little irrigation.

Osafo-Maafo indicated that private sector development was important because rice production could not be developed by the government but by the private sector.

“It will depend on private farmers to develop rice as we depend on cocoa farmers to develop cocoa,” he noted.

In addition, the minister stated, there was a need for human development hence, focusing on technical and vocational education would enhance the economic growth of the country.

“The countries that have made it such as South Korea, Japan, and Germany, that is where the emphasis is on their education system,” he said.

In order to achieve a country beyond aid, Osafo-Maafo added that there was the need to harness effectively available resources and deploy them creatively and efficiently for rapid economic and social transformation.