{"id":21168,"date":"2024-09-02T13:19:35","date_gmt":"2024-09-02T13:19:35","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.selinawamucii.com\/news\/?p=21168"},"modified":"2024-09-02T13:25:27","modified_gmt":"2024-09-02T13:25:27","slug":"the-cocoa-sector-in-ghana-witnesses-three-staggering-developments","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.selinawamucii.com\/news\/2024\/09\/02\/the-cocoa-sector-in-ghana-witnesses-three-staggering-developments\/","title":{"rendered":"The cocoa sector in Ghana witnesses three staggering developments"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

End August 2024 has redefined the cocoa sector in Ghana through a historical self-financing intention and a price<\/u><\/a> tripling demand by farmers.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

An announcement on self-financing rather than relying on\u00a0syndicated loans<\/u><\/a>\u00a0has arguably been the defining story for the sector.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

On August 23, the Ghana Cocoa Board (COCOBOD) promised to stop high interest international loan requests, a first in 32 years.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The announcement followed the insight that Ghana paid 8% yearly interest<\/u><\/a> to refinance the 2022-2023 loan, totaling $32 million.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

According to COCOBOD, the aim is to cut $150 million in interest that comes with repaying international credit. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Financing Locally<\/strong><\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n

This about-turn led to the next key development of the month, namely local funding through cocoa traders.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Accordingly, the Agriculture Minister, Bryan Acheampong said in a press conference on August 29 that the country will meanwhile resort to \u201cspot buying.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The sales will help raise a fraction of the $1.5 billion <\/u><\/a>yearly financing for the cocoa sector in Ghana. This amount goes into buying seedlings, pesticides, fertilizers and purchasing the harvest back from the growers.  <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Spot selling refers to transacting cocoa beans without collateral or any prior contract, at the reigning market rates.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Notably, Ghana failed to secure the top prices of cocoa in the 2023-24 season because it signed permanent contracts. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Spot selling is on an \u201cas is\u201d basis, allowing sales at the prevailing market prices and thus generating profits.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Currently, spot sales account for\u00a010 and 30%\u00a0<\/u><\/a>of Ghana’s cocoa sales while the rest are in pre-contracts. \u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Farmers Demand Price Hike<\/strong><\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Talking of sales brings the third major development August 2024, namely farmers\u2019 demand for better farm-gate prices.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

With the 2023-2024 prices at 2,070 cedi ($132.07) per 64 kg bag, farmers want it to triple to 6,000 cedi<\/u><\/a> ($382.80).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

On August 26, 2024 report, the Ghana National Cocoa Farmers Association (GNCFA)  said that the prevailing fixed rate no longer counts for growers. This especially at a time when the international price has even hit over $10,000<\/u><\/a> a tonne through 2024.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

So, three currents are pulsing through the cocoa sector in Ghana and may spill over into the 2024-25 season, now just starting. And as the statistics below show, projections show the new season will have production improvements.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Ghana 2024-25 Cocoa  Statistics<\/strong><\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Preliminary estimates for Ghana\u2019s 2024-25 cocoa season project a handsome production curve. COCOBOD told the media on August 13, 2023 that the 2024-25 season may see yields increase to\u00a0800,000 tonnes<\/u><\/a>. This will be twice the September 2023-July 2024 harvest of\u00a0429,323 tonnes<\/u><\/a>, which COCOBOD tabled on Jul 18, 2024. While annual production has been averaging 800,000 tonnes since 2019, the peak was in the 2020-21 season at\u00a01 million tonnes.<\/u><\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

How many families<\/strong> currently<\/strong> depend on Ghana\u2019s cocoa<\/strong> sector<\/strong>? <\/p>\n\n\n\n

According to the government of Ghana,\u00a0800,000 families\u00a0<\/u><\/a>depend directly from cocoa cultivation in 6 of 10 cocoa-growing areas of the country. \u00a0These families and large farms produce and export almost their entire harvest of at least\u00a0600,000 tonnes<\/a><\/u>,\u00a0as of 2021.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n

What is the historical export total of Ghana\u2019s cocoa<\/strong>? <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Exports average\u00a0800,000 tonnes<\/u><\/a>\u00a0a year, while 2018 saw a shipment peak of\u00a0843,600 tonnes<\/u><\/a>. These were the second highest shipments globally after Ivory Coast\u2019s.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Will the 2024-25 acreage expand<\/strong>?  <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Ghana\u2019s cocoa acreage continues to expand into the 2024.25 season, based on FAOSTAT and UNEP data. In 2020, there were\u00a01,484,568 cocoa hectares<\/u><\/a>\u00a0(ha), which rose to 1,919,763 ha in 2021 and then to 2,007,417 ha in 2022. By February 2023, the total area was at\u00a02.3 million hectares<\/u><\/a> while the 2024-25 season’s area is curving upward.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

End August 2024 has redefined the cocoa sector in Ghana through a historical self-financing intention and a price tripling demand by farmers. An announcement on self-financing rather than relying on\u00a0syndicated loans\u00a0has arguably been the defining story for the sector. On August 23, the Ghana Cocoa Board (COCOBOD) promised to stop high interest international loan requests, a first…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":20612,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[2],"tags":[],"yoast_head":"\nThe cocoa sector in Ghana witnesses three staggering developments - Selina Wamucii | Food & Agriculture News<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.selinawamucii.com\/news\/2024\/09\/02\/the-cocoa-sector-in-ghana-witnesses-three-staggering-developments\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"The cocoa sector in Ghana witnesses three staggering developments - Selina Wamucii | Food & Agriculture News\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"End August 2024 has redefined the cocoa sector in Ghana through a historical self-financing intention and a price tripling demand by farmers. 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