The Minority in Parliament has vowed to oppose the Ghana Cocoa Board’s (COCOBOD) plan to self-finance cocoa bean purchases through domestic traders.
This shocking move by the caucus comes after COCOBOD’s CEO, Joseph Boahen Aidoo, revealed that for the first time in 30 years, the board will forgo offshore loans to fund cocoa bean purchases for the 2024/2025 season.
The Minority Leader, Cassiel Ato Forson, slammed COCOBOD’s decision to skip foreign loans as a desperate ploy to mask their dwindling creditworthiness.
In a fiery statement on August 21, Dr. Ato Forson accused the board of using this move as a face-saving tactic.
“The announcement by COCOBOD that it has taken a bold decision not to borrow from foreign banks to finance cocoa purchases after 32 years is false, unmeritorious, contrived, and face-saving,” portions of the statement said.
The Minority Leader condemned the Akufo-Addo/Bawumia government for shattering a 32-year tradition of reliably supporting Ghana’s economy and stabilizing the Cedi.
He noted that under Akufo-Addo and Bawumia’s leadership, the government has incurred over GH¢11 billion in losses over the past seven years.
The losses were GH¢395 million in 2017, GH¢78.2 million in 2018, GH¢320.6 million in 2019, GH¢426 million in 2020, GH¢2.4 billion in 2021, GH¢3.2 billion in 2022, and GH¢4.2 billion in 2023.
Deputy Ranking Member on the Agric Committee, Dr. Seidu Jassaw, echoed the alarm, denouncing COCOBOD’s self-financing plan as a reckless move in the face of a severe financial crisis.
“This is a dire situation. I was expecting COCOBOD to be forthcoming with the information so that Ghanaians can interrogate it, but when you try to flip it over and bring a deliberate policy shift when really it is your incapacity and therefore inability to be able to solve the crisis, I think that is disingenuous and Ghanaians shouldn’t be taken for granted.”
Background
Ghana Cocoa Board (COCOBOD) announced it will not seek cocoa-syndicated loans for the 2024/25 season, which begins on September 1.
COCOBOD’s Chief Executive, Joseph Boahen Aidoo, revealed at a media briefing that the Board will finance the cocoa purchases domestically. “After two years of challenges, we’ve learned our lessons. It’s time to rely on local funding and distance ourselves from international financial markets,” Aidoo stated.
He assured that the board has a clear plan for securing local funds, specifying their needs and sources.
Additionally, COCOBOD has reduced its target for the season from 810,000 tons to 650,000 tons.
Originally, COCOBOD had aimed to raise $1.5 billion from international markets, but Aidoo confirmed this is no longer feasible due to last year’s nearly $150 million in interest payments.