An exchange over the rising cost of living, particularly the price of rice, dominated discussions on Metro TV’s Good Morning Ghana on Thursday December 26, 2025, as Managing Editor of the Insight newspaper, Kwesi Pratt Jnr, locked horns with former Executive Director of the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), Dr Henry Kwabena Kokofu.

The clash unfolded during a broader debate on Ghana’s economic performance, import substitution and the impact of government policies on household prices, with rice emerging as the most contentious example.

The confrontation intensified when Kwesi Pratt insisted that prices of some essential goods, including rice, had gone down, citing a stronger cedi and improved import conditions.

However, Dr Kokofu disagreed, questioning the real-life impact of these claims on ordinary Ghanaians.

He challenged Kwesi Pratt's assertion by pointing to what he described as the lived reality of consumers, arguing that any supposed reduction in prices was not being felt widely.

At the peak of the exchange, Pratt bluntly told Kokofu, “You're the only person who is still buying expensive rice. Whoever supplies you rice is a cheat. Stop buying rice from the person because the rice I buy, it's come down…maybe you are buying the imported rice.”

Kokofu insisted, challenging Pratt's assertion.

Pratt suggested that if Kokofu was still paying high prices, then either his supplier was “cheating” him or he was shopping from “special places” detached from the realities of the ordinary market.

The discussion quickly shifted to the distinction between locally produced rice and imported brands.

Kokofu maintained that he patronises Ghanaian rice and claimed its price had not reduced in his experience.

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Pratt countered by accusing Kokofu of indirectly supporting imported rice, arguing that cheaper imports driven by access to foreign exchange were undercutting local rice farmers and processors.

According to Pratt, importers benefit from relatively cheaper dollars, allowing them to flood the market with foreign rice at prices local producers cannot match, thereby threatening Ghana’s domestic rice industry.

“Those producing rice locally cannot compete with them on the market,” Pratt argued.



AM

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