Ghana Cocoa Board (COCOBOD) has assured cocoa farmers that the upcoming announcement on the cocoa producer price in August will be higher than what has been set by neighboring Côte d’Ivoire.
This assurance comes amid strong market expectations for a competitive farmgate price, driven by the surge in global cocoa prices and Ghana’s commitment to ensuring better earnings for its farmers.
Despite the operational and financial challenges inherited by the new management of COCOBOD, the institution remains confident in its ability to deliver a favourable price adjustment.
Currently, the producer price of cocoa in Ghana stands at GH₵3,100 per 64kg bag. Côte d’Ivoire raised the price it pays farmers for their beans amid expectations for a smaller harvest, slightly narrowing the gap to the global market in April this year.
It set the farmgate price for the mid-crop which started on April 2 at 2,200 CFA francs ($3.62) a kilogram.
Head of Public Affairs at COCOBOD Jerome Sam speaking to Citi Business News says cocoa farmers should expect improved cocoa producer price.
“By the time we are done with servicing 333,767 metric tonnes [of cocoa], COCOBOD and the Ghanaian farmer will lose a whooping amount of about $1.4 billion as a result of the inefficiency and inability on the part of the previous administration of COCOBOD to deliver those contract. As at that time, we didn’t know. But notwithstanding, the CEO said that is not a justification to tell the Ghanaian farmer that because of “A,B,C,D” we are not going to announce a new price. No, because if you want productivity to spur or shoot up then you need to find a way to motivate the farmer,” he said
“If we are to stick to the price of Côte d’Ivoire being the benchmark…which ever price Côte d’Ivoire gives, we are going to give more than that. The board is yet to be inaugurated. When the Board comes, some of these issues will be tabled before the Board but at least we have some sense or clue as to where to peg the price and we are not going to do less than what Côte d’Ivoire is doing,” Jerome Sam added.
