 to urgently pay cocoa farmers for beans sold since November 2025, warning that prolonged delays are pushing farmers and the wider cocoa industry into crisis.){kind=link}
The Ranking Member on Parliament’s Food, Agriculture and Cocoa Affairs Committee, Isaac Yaw Opoku, has urged the government and the Ghana Cocoa Board (COCOBOD) to urgently pay cocoa farmers for beans sold since November 2025, warning that prolonged delays are pushing farmers and the wider cocoa industry into crisis.
Speaking to journalists in Accra on Thursday, February 5, Mr. Opoku said the Minority Caucus is alarmed by the deteriorating conditions facing cocoa farmers, many of whom, he noted, have gone unpaid for more than three months.
According to him, Licensed Buying Companies (LBCs) have been unable to settle payments to farmers because COCOBOD has not reimbursed them for cocoa already delivered. He disclosed that COCOBOD currently owes LBCs in excess of GH¢10 billion for cocoa taken over, leaving the companies financially constrained and unable to continue purchasing from farmers.
Mr. Opoku accused the government and COCOBOD of failing in their responsibility to reimburse the LBCs, many of which he said had resorted to borrowing from banks and off-taker traders to pre-finance cocoa purchases. He dismissed claims by COCOBOD that sufficient funds had been released to sustain cocoa buying, describing such assertions as misleading.
“The reality is that farmers have not been paid for cocoa sold to the Mahama-led NDC government since November last year,” he stated.
He highlighted the human toll of the delayed payments, citing cases of farmers unable to afford medication, pay school fees, or cater for sick family members. According to him, some farmers were compelled to forgo Christmas celebrations for the first time because they had not received payment for their produce.
“As a result, farmers are being forced to sell their cocoa on credit, at heavy discounts, or return home with their produce unsold,” he added, warning that the situation poses serious risks to the cocoa industry and the national economy.
The Ranking Member also criticised the government for what he described as a failure to honour campaign promises made ahead of the December 7 elections. He recalled that then-opposition figures, including Dr. Eric Opoku and Dr. Cassiel Ato Forson, had pledged producer prices of GH¢6,000 and GH¢7,000 per bag, respectively.
However, he noted that the current farmgate price stands at GH¢3,625 per 64kg bag, far below those assurances. He further expressed concern over reports that the government may consider reducing the producer price in order to settle arrears owed to farmers, describing such a move as a betrayal of trust.
Mr. Opoku accused the government of focusing on administrative expenditure rather than measures to prevent cocoa smuggling, contrary to commitments in the NDC manifesto. He also alleged that mass transfers and wasteful spending within COCOBOD have worsened the financial situation, even as farmers remain unpaid.
He warned that the delayed payments are not only hurting farmers but also threatening the survival of indigenous cocoa buying companies and transporters whose working capital has been locked up.
The Minority Caucus is therefore demanding the immediate payment of cocoa farmers for all beans sold, full reimbursement of LBCs for outstanding deliveries, and prompt settlement of future cocoa taken-over receipts. They also called on the government and COCOBOD to apologise, insisting that timely payment to farmers is a statutory obligation, not a favour.
“Cocoa farmers are not beggars. Paying them on time is an obligation,” Mr. Opoku stressed.