The 2023 edition of the Ghana Chicken Festival has been launched in Accra.
The festival, which is in its third year, is envisioned to promote the production, marketing and consumption of local chicken for sustainable growth of the industry and creating more jobs.
The event will come off on 1st July 2023 at the forecourt of the State House.
In her welcome address, the Executive Director of Agrihouse Foundation, promoters of the festival, Alberta Nana Akyea Akosa, noted that the idea of Ghana Chicken Festival was born from the search for solutions to alleviate the effects of scarcity in the poultry industry.
The Chicken Festival was preceded by the Livestock, Poultry and Fisheries Trade Show (LiPF) in 2019.
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“It was in the course of executing the project that we noticed the growing challenges faced by Ghana’s poultry farmers and, in response to that situation, we arrived at the idea of the Ghana Chicken Festival, in collaboration with the then USDA Ghana Poultry Project.”
“Because our study showed that Ghana could meet its poultry need if we looked inward and gainfully exploit the already existing potentials in that area.”
According to Alberta Akosa, Ghana could sufficiently meet her poultry need with additional benefits as the local breed of fowls contains Vitamin D and less toxin.
This year’s Chicken Festival, she said, will have three key features; a knowledge-sharing panel conversation of the industry value chain and opportunities for growth; A chicken recipe cooking competition that will use leaders of institutions, and decision-makers as influencers in promoting the poultry industry; and chicken meat sampling, exhibitions and networking.
She urged individuals and corporate Ghana to join Agrihouse Foundation adding, “We are encouraging everyone to join us, on the 1st of July, to celebrate our Poultry Industry and share practical ideas on how we can strengthen advocacy works and activities, to scale the Industry up,” she said.
In his speech, the Chairperson for the occasion and National President of the Ghana Poultry Farmers Association, Mr Victor Oppong argued that poultry has the potential of creating jobs and wealth.
According to him, the industry is capable of providing over a million jobs along the value chain to mitigate the unemployment challenges confronting the country over the years and the potential to alleviate poverty through its job creation.
He stated that Ghana has depended on imported frozen chicken for decades and disclosed US$600 million worth of frozen chicken was imported in 2021 alone.
“This signifies exportation of job opportunities, as well as pressure on the exchange rate which could have imparted our economy positively,” he lamented.
Citing an example, Mr Oppong indicated that in 2018 the US economy spent $739.6 billion on the poultry industry and argued should Ghana target just 1% of this $739.6 billion, then her economy would be impacted with $739.6 million.
“This is an indication of how the Poultry industry alone can contribute to the economic growth of the country.”
“I would therefore recommend that the Poultry industry be considered as a game changer to Economic Drive,” he stated.
He urged the government to take a critical look at poultry and agriculture in general, as the sector has the capacity to drive socio-economic growth and human health.
