Hon. Isaac Yaw Opoku, Ranking Member of Parliament’s Committee on Food, Agriculture and Cocoa Affairs, has strongly refuted claims by the Chief Executive of Ghana Cocoa Board (COCOBOD) that farmers cannot be paid due to a default in syndicated loan repayment. He made the remarks at a press conference organized by members of the Minority Caucus on Food, Agriculture and Cocoa Affairs.
Describing the plight of cocoa farmers as “a sad situation,” Hon. Opoku lamented that many have endured severe hardship, with some reportedly losing their lives as a result of delayed payments. He criticized COCOBOD’s explanation that the previous administration defaulted on the syndicated loan for the 2023–2024 cocoa season, preventing the current government from accessing the facility.
“I was surprised that this was coming from the chief executive. It is absolutely untrue. It is totally false,” he declared. He stressed that since Ghana began contracting syndicated loans in 1993, the country has never defaulted on repayment. He challenged COCOBOD to provide evidence of any default, including the amount and outstanding balance, if such claims were true.
Hon. Opoku acknowledged that international cocoa prices have indeed fallen, but argued that this is not unprecedented. He recalled that when the New Patriotic Party (NPP) assumed office in January 2017, world market prices had dropped sharply from USD 3,000 per tonne in June 2016 to USD 1,800 per tonne, barely enough to sustain farmers.
He urged government and COCOBOD to take responsibility and ensure timely payments to farmers, warning that continued neglect undermines livelihoods and threatens the sustainability of Ghana’s cocoa sector.
Leave a Reply