Member of Parliament (MP) for Akim Oda constituency, Alexander Akwasi Acquah, has announced the establishment of an Emergency Social Intervention fund aimed at alleviating the hardships faced by local cocoa farmers.
In a recent address to constituents, Mr. Acquah revealed that numerous appeals have been made to him regarding the difficulties cocoa farmers are experiencing.
He noted that while awaiting a permanent solution from the Ghana Cocoa Board (Cocobod) and the government, he has decided to allocate a significant portion of his Common Fund, supplemented by personal resources, to support the farmers immediately.
“There has been several appeals to me on the hardships these farmers are going through since I came to the constituency this weekend.
“As we wait for Cocobod and for that matter government to find a lasting solution to this stalemate, I have proposed to apply a greater portion of my common fund in addition to personal resources to support the farmers,” he said.
The initiative involves paying a percentage of the value of cocoa beans currently awaiting payment through purchasing clerks.
The MP explained that, based on guarantees from the clerks, the advanced support will be refunded once the government finalizes the payments to the farmers.
“Through the purchasing clerks, I will pay a percentage of the cocoa beans that are awaiting to be paid for and base on the guarantee from the clerks, these support will be refunded when government eventually pays,” Mr. Acquah stated.
The move is expected to provide temporary relief to cocoa farmers in the Akim Oda constituency as they await broader governmental interventions to resolve the stalemate affecting cocoa payments.
