The Minister of Finance, Dr Cassiel Ato Forson, has announced that the government has allocated US$1 billion for the construction of the Pwalugu Multipurpose Dam as part of its interventions to strengthen Ghana’s vegetable production and achieve self-sufficiency in the vegetable industry.Presenting the 2027 Budget Statement to Parliament,
Dr Forson said the project would serve as the seventh major intervention in the vegetable industry value chain, with the Pwalugu Multipurpose Dam serving as its anchor.
He explained that the dam would provide irrigation for more than 25,000 hectares of land for vegetable production, while its reservoir would accommodate 1,000 fish cages to support aquaculture development.
According to him, the project would promote year-round vegetable production, improve water security, provide flood protection and support agribusiness activities along the White Volta corridor.
The initiative is also expected to help minimise the devastating effects of annual spillage from Burkina Faso’s Bagre Dam, which frequently causes flooding and destroys farmers’ crops and other properties in parts of the Upper East, North East and Northern regions.
Dr Forson further disclosed that the Pwalugu Multipurpose Dam would generate 70 megawatts (MW) of hydroelectric power to support agro-industries within and around the Pwalugu enclave.
He said the electricity generated would provide power for processing factories, irrigation systems, packhouses and cold-storage facilities, helping to connect agricultural production directly to processing and enable businesses to add value to produce closer to farming communities.
The Finance Minister indicated that the first phase of the project was expected to be ready by early 2029, while the full construction of the dam was scheduled for completion by December 2030.
He added that the Pwalugu project would be complemented by the development of serviced vegetable production enclaves in other regions, water-harvesting systems and protected cultivation facilities to further strengthen Ghana’s agricultural sector.
Source:mywordfmonline.com/Gaspard Adongo Ayuureneeya.