COCOBOD HAS LAID SOLID FOUNDATION FOR INVESTMENT INTO PRODUCTION

Date: 05th July 2023

The Chief Executive of Ghana Cocoa Board (COCOBOD), Hon Joseph Boahen Aidoo, has stated that management of the cocoa regulatory body has laid a concrete foundation for smooth investment in cocoa farmers across the country to complement the efforts of the government.

Hon Aidoo is therefore calling on licensed buying companies (LBCs), input dealers, and other stakeholders in the cocoa industry to direct some of their investment portfolios towards on-field farming activities in order to help achieve optimum results.

According to the CE of COCOBOD, major players in the cocoa industry can now take advantage of the robust system that has been put in place by the current regime and invest directly in the area of primary production with guaranteed maximum returns.

Hon Aidoo, who made the call when a delegation from Olam Foods Ingredients (OFI) paid a courtesy call on the management of COCOBOD, said government alone could no longer continue to bear the cost of supporting farmers’ productivity initiatives, hence, the need for LBCs, inputs dealers and other partners to consider directing part of their investments into supporting production.

He said with the successful completion of the Cocoa Management System (CMS), interested investors can now have full access to comprehensive demographic data of all cocoa farmers in the country, making it easy for potential investors to target farmers based on their preferred specifications.

The COCOBOD boss further asserted that the CMS has also helped to reduce any potential risk, as data on farmers can always be accessed for easy monitoring and evaluation.

“We believe that the cocoa management system provides an opportunity for our partners to strengthen their holds with farmers and cooperatives; it is time for you to scale up your support to cocoa farmers by directly investing in some of the interventions we have introduced to hence productivity and here I am referring to interventions such as the cocoa rehabilitation” He emphasized.

The COCOBOD Chief Executive has meanwhile commended the management of Olam Foods Ingredients and its Chief Sustainability Officer, Mr. Gerard Manley, for their invaluable contribution to the sustenance of the operations of COCOBOD.

Hon Aidoo recounted with sweet memories the successful rollout of the Living Income Differential (LID) and the surprising intervention COCOBOD received from OFI, under the leadership of Mr. Gerard Manley.

‘Let me state particularly our heartfelt appreciation to Mr. Manley and OFI for your support all these years; I recall during the early stages of the rollout of the LID and its associated marketing uncertainties, OFI was our first international trading partner that purchased 50,000 metric tons of our cocoa under the LID. This was a major breakthrough for us all thanks to Gerry and his team,” Hon Boahen noted. 

Responding to the appeal, Mr. Gerard Manley reiterated the commitment of OFI to the development of Ghana’s cocoa industry.

While commending the management of COCOBOD for effective leadership, Mr. Manley said OFI would continue to partner with COCOBOD in the implementation of globally acceptable community and human-cantered programmes in cocoa growing areas in order to build the capacity of cocoa farmers and improve their living conditions.