President John Dramani Mahama has called for greater self-reliance in food production following the Trump administration’s closure of the United States Agency for International Development (USAID), a move that has left Ghana facing a $156 million revenue shortfall.
Speaking at a roundtable discussion at the Munich Security Conference, Mahama emphasized the need for Ghana and the African continent to shift away from dependence on foreign aid and instead invest in local food production and trade infrastructure.
In his remarks, Mahama framed the USAID suspension as an opportunity rather than a crisis, urging African nations to focus on increasing agricultural output to ensure food security.
“If that aid stops coming, we would do the investments that are necessary to make our farmers more productive so that we can establish food security in Africa instead of waiting for those USAID handouts to come.“
Mahama highlighted the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) as a vital step toward economic independence, noting that most African nations have already ratified the protocol. He stressed the importance of developing infrastructure to facilitate intra-African trade, which has long been constrained by colonial-era trade patterns that prioritized exports to Europe over regional exchange.
“We need to develop the infrastructure to exchange goods amongst ourselves. Already, most countries allow free movement of people, and if we can achieve free movement of goods and services, it will fill a huge gap in South-South trade.”
While Africa adapts to the new reality, Mahama noted that American farmers are already facing difficulties due to the absence of USAID food auctions, which previously absorbed surplus US agricultural products.
“US farmers are beginning to complain because USAID was the biggest mopper of excess food for food aid to Africa, and now those auctions aren’t happening.”
When asked whether the USAID suspension would finally push Africa toward economic independence, Mahama was optimistic:
“Definitely, we’ll learn to be more self-reliant as a continent and trade more amongst ourselves. There’s a lot of room for expanding trade, and this could be the turning point
.”
President Mahama’s call for self-reliance signals a shift in strategy—one that prioritizes agricultural investment, trade expansion, and long-term sustainability over dependence on foreign aid.
