Minister of Agriculture Highlights Reduced Onion Prices and Successful Local Production
Kadijatu Barrie The Minister of Agriculture, Henry Musa Kpaka, took to his social media page on X (formerly Twitter) to compare the current market price of onions to that of the past.
“Almost two years ago, there was a shortage of onions in Sierra Leone. If you could find one, it could cost you an arm and a leg,” the minister reiterated.
He expressed gratitude to President Bio for his direct intervention in organizing smallholder farmers and partnering with the private sector to enhance onion production and post-harvest management.
Minister Kpaka noted that the current low price of locally produced onions is a significant achievement, with bags being sold for NLe 280—almost half the cost of imported onions, which are priced at NLe 420 per bag.
“The outcomes have energized me because they demonstrate that with deliberate efforts, we can achieve positive results,” he added.
The minister’s statements reflect a growing optimism regarding the agricultural sector in Sierra Leone, as local production continues to address food security and price stability in the market.
Onions is the least he should be thinking of interms of transformed agriculture, this is a spicy food, work on the staple food for the nation.
This in itself is a landmark achievement.It can’t be done overnight.Little by little till we reach a point that we all want to be-achieving sufficiency in all food types. But they themselves have to do more in investing into machineries, quality seeds,scaling up farmers from being a peasant to that of a commercial type,not ignoring access to capital by farmers as well.