President John Dramani Mahama says Ghana will no longer depend on foreign borrowing to finance cocoa purchases.
He stated that the planned decision is in line with a new policy direction intended to support farmers and improve sustainability in the industry.
According to him, one of the key decisions taken at a recent high-level crisis meeting was to end the long-standing practice of collateralising Ghana’s cocoa beans to secure external funding.
Speaking at the “Accra Reset” sideline event of the African Union Summit in Ethiopia, he described the arrangement as limiting and counterproductive to Ghana’s industrial ambitions.
“As part of the new direction, the government will raise domestic bonds to finance cocoa purchases locally,” Mr. Mahama disclosed.
President Mahama further disclosed that although Ghana has the capacity to process up to 400,000 tonnes of cocoa beans annually, the collateralisation agreements prevent the country from supplying beans to local processors.
President Mahama cited developments in Ghana’s cocoa sector as a clear example of the economic challenges created by volatility in global commodity prices and exchange rate movements.
He explained that Ghana had set its cocoa producer price at a time when international market conditions were favourable.
