.. Fund raises GH¢3.5m at launch to transform agricultural education
The Ministry of Food and Agriculture (MoFA) has launched the Ghana Agricultural Fund for Education and Transformation (GAFET), a national endowment designed to provide sustainable financing for agricultural education and the human capital needed to transform the sector. The Fund was formally launched by the Minister for Food and Agriculture, Honourable Eric Opoku, at a ceremony in Accra attended by development partners, financial institutions, agribusiness leaders, traditional authorities, students and the media.
GAFET seeks to address a critical imbalance in Ghana’s economy. Agriculture contributes more than a fifth of the economy, yet only about 2 percent of tertiary students are enrolled in agricultural programmes, while agricultural education institutions face an estimated annual funding gap of GH¢12 million.
The Fund will pool contributions into a professionally managed endowment, with the capital preserved and invested and annual returns used to finance approved priorities across the agricultural education system. “If Ghana wants to transform agriculture, it must invest in the people who will transform agriculture,” Steven Nhyira Odarteifio, Lead Coordinator of GAFET said.
He added that GAFET would focus on closing the gap between classroom learning and the practical demands of modern agriculture by supporting laboratories, demonstration farms, mechanisation, digital agriculture, research and innovation, agribusiness incubation and faculty development. He said the objective was to ensure that graduates leave agricultural institutions with the technical and entrepreneurial capabilities required to participate meaningfully in a modern, technology-driven agricultural economy.
He also called for broader participation from the private sector, financial institutions, development partners, alumni associations and individuals, arguing that the fund’s long-term success would depend on its ability to build a broad national ownership base. “This fund does not end today. Today is only its birth. Let history recall that when the call came to rebuild Ghana’s agricultural future, government provided the vision, the private sector provided the confidence, and development partners provided their partnership, and together we built an institution that future generations will thank us for,” he said.
Delivering the keynote address, Hon. Opoku described GAFET as a human-capital pillar of the government’s flagship Feed Ghana programme. “Before we can sustainably feed Ghana, we must equip Ghana. The quality of agricultural transformation will depend on the quality of agricultural human capital,” he said.
The Minister, who was flanked by high ranking personnel of the ministry, including his deputy, Hon. John Setor Dumelo, called on commercial banks, pension funds, insurance companies, agribusinesses, development partners, philanthropic foundations and alumni associations to support the Fund through contributions to laboratories, workshops, demonstration farms, scholarships and agricultural colleges. He also highlighted recent increases in funding to agricultural colleges, from GH¢35,000 to GH¢100,000 per institution, which he said had contributed to a 35 percent increase in enrolment.
GH¢3.5million raised at launch
GAFET has mobilised GH¢3.5 million in founding capital and aims to grow the fund to GH¢10 million by December 2026 and GH¢100 million by December 2028. The Fund is expected to transition to a full endowment structure in the fourth quarter of 2026, with a governing board, fund administrator, fund manager and custodian bank. It is ultimately expected to become a permanent statutory institution established by an Act of Parliament.
Its governance framework will include a Securities and Exchange Commission-licensed fund manager, independent annual audits, an approved investment policy focused on capital preservation and published annual summaries. GAFET will initially support 21 agricultural education institutions, comprising five standalone agricultural colleges and 16 universities and technical universities. Returns from the endowment will support practical training, mechanisation, research and innovation, digital agriculture, agribusiness incubation, faculty development and scholarships.
Secretariat Technical Lead Seyram Kofori-Ndinya said the Fund’s governance would be critical to maintaining public confidence. “Our objective is to show how the Fund will be governed, so that every contribution made today actually outlives all of us in this room,” she said.
Agribusiness coalition backs initiative
Five Ghanaian-led agribusinesses — AgriSolve, GrowForMe, New Age Agric Solutions, Tradeline Consult and Farmerline — have joined GAFET as founding partners. The partners highlighted the need to attract more young people into agriculture and equip them with practical skills, technology and access to modern agricultural infrastructure. Farmerline pledged to contribute capital and access to its technology platform, while GrowForMe committed to opening its crowdfunding platform to support the Fund’s growth.
Declaring GAFET formally launched, Minister Opoku urged stakeholders to focus on building institutions that would benefit generations beyond the present. “Generations yet unborn will remember not the speeches delivered but the institutions built,” he said.
For Mr. Odarteifio, the launch marks the beginning of a long-term national effort. “This fund does not end today. Today is only its birth. Together we can build an institution that future generations will thank us for,” Mr. Odarteifio said.
The Ghana Agricultural Fund for Education and Transformation (GAFET), is a national endowment under the policy oversight of the Ministry of Food and Agriculture. It pools contributions from government, agribusinesses, financial institutions, development partners, philanthropists and individuals into a professionally managed fund whose capital is preserved and invested, with annual returns financing approved priorities across Ghana’s agricultural education system.
