The Ministry of Food and Agriculture has begun distributing 900 water pumping machines to farming communities in nine regions as part of the government’s flagship Feed Ghana initiative.

The pumps, originally seized from illegal mining (galamsey) sites by the national anti-galamsey task force, were transferred to the Ministry by court order for reallocation to productive agricultural use.

Speaking at a ceremony in Accra, Food and Agriculture Minister Mr Eric Opoku said the move was aimed at expanding irrigation, improving crop yields, and strengthening national food security.

“The decision to redirect these machines to farming communities is to ensure that equipment once used for destructive purposes now contributes positively to our economy and food systems,” Mr Opoku said.

The beneficiary regions include Upper East, Upper West, North East, Savannah, Northern, Greater Accra, Volta, Oti, and Bono East—each receiving 100 pumps.

The Minister explained that the regions were strategically selected to minimise the risk of the pumps being diverted back to illegal mining activities.

Farmers in the chosen areas have been organised into community-based cooperatives, which will oversee the machines under the supervision of regional ministers and directors of agriculture.

Mr. Opoku also assured the public that all pumps had undergone technical inspection and were certified safe for agricultural use, free from any contamination associated with their previous deployment at mining sites.

The redistribution of the seized equipment forms part of the government’s broader strategy to repurpose resources from the fight against illegal mining to support sustainable farming and rural livelihoods.