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Claim: The National Chairman of the National Democratic Congress (NDC), Johnson Asiedu Nketia, has claimed that the performance in agriculture during Fmr. President John Mahama’s tenure in government was better than that of the NPP government.

Verdict: False.DUBAWA used data from the Ghana Statistical Service (GSS) to calculate the average growth rate between the tenure of the New Patriotic Party and the National Democratic Congress. The average growth rate of the NPP was 6.32%, whilst the NDC was 2.54%. This showed that the NPP administration recorded far higher agricultural growth rates than the administration of former president John Mahama.
Full Text
On March 13, 2023, Johnson Asiedu Nketia, the National Chairman of the National Democratic Congress (NDC), appeared on TV3’s Hot Issues with broadcast journalist Keminni Amanor.
During the show, Mr Nketia claimed, “In the past, our performance in agriculture was far stronger than what we are seeing now.” This statement can be found within the timeframe from 13:40 to 13:46 of the show. He made this comment in response to a question posed by the host regarding the achievements of the NDC government under John Mahama.
Despite the host characterising his claim as false, Mr Nketiah maintained his stance, asserting that the agricultural performance during the NDC era surpassed that of the NPP. Consequently, DUBAWA took the initiative to provide clarity on the matter.
Verification
The upcoming 2024 general elections are poised to be significantly influenced by the state of the economy. Consequently, highlighting the economic performances of political parties and voicing their impact on voters is crucial. Agriculture, as a key contributor to economic growth, will hold particular importance in these discussions. Therefore, the growth rate in the agricultural sector will be one of the focal points during the debates.
To provide a comprehensive understanding of the claim, DUBAWA undertook a comparative analysis of the agricultural growth rates between the New Patriotic Party (NPP) under the leadership of President Akufo-Addo and the National Democratic Congress (NDC) under the supervision of former President John Mahama. This analysis focuses on the first five years of both parties, considering that John Mahama served as president from 2012 to 2016, while Nana Akufo-Addo’s first five years in office spanned from 2017 to 2021.
DUBAWA sourced its data from the Ghana Statistical Service (GSS). In the NDC government, the growth rate for agriculture from 2012-2016 was 1.3%, 5.7%, 0.9, 2.1 and 2.7%, respectively. In contrast, the growth rate for agriculture during the first five years of the NPP was 6.2%, 4.9%, 4.7%, 7.3% and 8.5%, respectively.

The growth rates for agriculture under the NDC government exhibited fluctuations, with some years experiencing moderate growth and others showing lower rates. In contrast, the NPP government, on the other hand, demonstrates a relatively consistent and increasing trend in agricultural growth rates over the first five years.
DUBAWA decided to use the average growth rate during the five years to conclude which government performed better. In our calculation, by adding all the growth rates for a particular government and dividing it by five, we found that the average growth rate for the NDC within the five years was 2.54%, while the average growth rate for the NPP during the five years was 6.32%.
Conclusion
Analysing both figures, DUBAWA concluded that the NPP government performed far better under President Akufo-Addo than the NDC in the first five years of the presidency of John Mahama..