Cocobod to acquire all fertilisers locally in 2020

Government has directed the Ghana Cocoa Board to purchase all fertilisers, needed for growing cocoa and other crops, from local sources, beginning next year.

Vice President Dr. Mahamudu Bawumia, who disclosed the directive, said government through the ‘One District One Factory’ initiative, has put in place the necessary steps to meet Ghana’s fertilizer demands.

The directive to purchase fertiliser locally, comes after recent major strides in the production of blended fertiliser in the country, with one company, Glofert Fertilizer Limited, having the capacity to produce about 800,000 metric tonnes per annum.

Four other local companies have also ramped up production, with other facilities under construction across the country.

Speaking at the 20th anniversary celebration of Olam Cocoa Ghana on Wednesday, Dr. Bawumia reiterated the need to purchase all fertilisers locally come 2020.

“Government has directed Cocobod to make sure that from next year, because there now exist sufficient local capacity for the manufacturing of fertilizer, at least the blending of fertilizer, government has instructed Cocobod that starting next year, all fertilizer they acquire must be from the local companies and not imported. Because now, thanks to 1D1F we have established the local capacity to satisfy our fertilizer demand, and this will save the country foreign exchange, ” the vice President said.

Dr. Bawumia commended the management of Olam Ghana for their contribution to national development over the years, especially in the area of job creation and the development of the cocoa industry.

“Government is aware of the many achievements of Olam Ghana, parent company of Olam Cocoa, in the agro-commodity sector of the economy. The company has gradually become one of the leading agro-commodity companies in the country. Your involvement in the export of cashew, and your tomato paste processing and canning has not escaped the eye of Government,” he noted.

The Vice President assured that government would continue to support and celebrate the private sector by implementing policies and programmes designed to remove obstacles that hinder their activities.

“We have made it a policy not to engage in activities that will put impediments or bottlenecks in the way of the private sector. Since we came into office, we have been working tirelessly to build a business-friendly environment that can attract private sector investment in order to create jobs and to grow the economy towards building a Ghana beyond aid.

“We shall continue to press forward in our efforts to achieve this noble goal. We want to celebrate the success stories of many more private companies, whether they are Ghanaian-owned or foreign-owned, just as we are witnessing today.”