Minority Demands Immediate Payment to Cocoa Farmers, Calls Delays ‘Unacceptable’

The Minority Caucus in Parliament has called on the government and the Ghana Cocoa Board (COCOBOD) to immediately settle outstanding payments to cocoa farmers for beans delivered since November 2025, citing worsening conditions in the sector.

Speaking in Accra on Thursday, February 5, Isaac Yaw Opoku, Ranking Member of Parliament’s Food, Agriculture and Cocoa Affairs Committee, said the failure to pay farmers for more than three months is creating a crisis for both producers and the cocoa industry.

He explained that Licensed Buying Companies (LBCs) are unable to pay farmers because COCOBOD has not reimbursed them for cocoa previously delivered. According to him, COCOBOD currently owes LBCs over GH¢10 billion, leaving the companies financially constrained and unable to continue purchases.

“As a result, farmers are forced to sell on credit, at heavy discounts, or leave their produce unsold,” Opoku said, warning that the situation threatens the cocoa sector and the wider economy.

He accused the government of failing to honour its responsibility to reimburse LBCs, noting that many had borrowed from banks and off-taker traders to finance cocoa purchases. Opoku dismissed COCOBOD’s claims that sufficient funds had been released, describing such statements as misleading.

Highlighting the human impact, he said delayed payments have prevented farmers from affording healthcare, paying school fees, or celebrating holidays, with some even postponing Christmas for the first time due to unpaid cocoa sales.

Opoku also criticised the government for not fulfilling pre-election promises of GH¢6,000 to GH¢7,000 per 64kg bag, noting that the current farmgate price stands at GH¢3,625. He warned against any move to reduce producer prices to pay farmers, calling it a breach of trust.

The Ranking Member further alleged that administrative inefficiencies and excessive transfers within COCOBOD have worsened the situation, even as farmers remain unpaid. He stressed that delays also endanger indigenous cocoa buying companies and transporters whose capital is tied up.

The Minority Caucus is therefore demanding:

1. Immediate payment to cocoa farmers for all cocoa sold
2. Full reimbursement of LBCs for outstanding deliveries
3. Prompt settlement of future cocoa takeovers
4. An official apology from the government and COCOBOD

“Cocoa farmers are not beggars. Paying them on time is an obligation,” Opoku emphasised.