Dr. Cassiel Ato Forson, the Minority Leader in Parlimanent has vowed that the National Democratic Congress (NDC) will increase cocoa prices, give free fertilizers, free sprayers, and improved deplorable roads in cocoa farming areas across the nation.
According to the NDC Minority group, government should have increased the price of a bag of cocoa by no less than GH¢2,500.
The Minority claims that by announcing the farm gate prices for cocoa, President Akufo-Addo and his appointees have engaged in egregious propaganda.
Speaking to a group of farmers in the Ahafo Region, Minority Leader Dr. Cassiel Ato Forson said that given the high price of cocoa on the global market, farmers should have received at least 2,500 cedis per cocoa bag.
The Ajumako Enyan Essiam MP claims that the government is taking advantage of cocoa farmers because the price of the good has increased by the most since 1977.
“As we speak now cocoa prices have seen the biggest increment since 1977 so it is your season to make a profit. If NDC were to be in government, we would have a bag of cocoa at GH¢2,500 and add a premium of GH¢300. So you would have received GH¢2,800 per bag,” he said.
Dr. Ato Forson claimed that the price announced by President Nana Akufo-Addo is another way his NPP led government to exploit from cocoa farmers because the government will pocket GHC1500 out of the 2,500 cedis per cocoa bag.
NDC Promises Higher Cocoa Prices, Free Fertilizers, Free Sprays, and Improved Roads – Ato Forson Assures Cocoa Farmers#UTVNews pic.twitter.com/6FMz1I5LaM
— UTV Ghana (@utvghana) September 14, 2023
While this is going on, Eric Opoku, the minority spokeswoman for agriculture and cocoa affairs, maintains that the NPP government cannot claim to have done anything extraordinary given the record-high rise in the price of cocoa on the global market.
He praised the NDC’s track record with cocoa farmers, which he described as being superior.
Background
For the current cocoa season, President Nana Akufo-Addo announced a price increase of more than 60%, or GH1,308 per cocoa bag.
On September 9, President Akufo-Addo acknowledged the difficulties faced by cocoa farmers due to low international cocoa prices, which have been made worse by the COVID-19 pandemic, in a speech at a gathering in Tepa.
He claimed that in spite of these challenges, COCOBOD and the government have decided to increase the cocoa producer price.
The President outlined the significant 68% increase in cocoa prices from GH7,600 per tonne in 2016 to GH12,800 per tonne in 2022.
For the new season, he continued, the government had increased cocoa prices from GH12,800 per tonne to GH20,943 per tonne, or GH1,308 per bag. He added that this new price represents 70.5% of the Gross FoB price and is equivalent to $1,821 per tonne.
Additionally, according to President Akufo-Addo, this is the highest price that has been paid to West African cocoa farmers in about 50 years.
