The government is partnering with private sector stakeholders and investors to develop over 10,000 hectares of cocoa farmland, in a strategic move to boost cocoa supply and reinforce Ghana’s standing in the global cocoa industry.
Minister for Food and Agriculture, Dr. Eric Opoku, revealed that the initiative will not only increase cocoa production but also stimulate economic growth through value addition.
Speaking at a press conference ahead of the April 11 launch of the Feed Ghana Project, Dr. Opoku emphasized that the government will play a supervisory role to ensure the collaboration delivers significant benefits such as job creation, expanded exports, and a more competitive cocoa sector.
“We are bringing in investors who are partnering with Ghanaians to cultivate 10,000 hectares of cocoa. They have also committed to establishing processing plants to add value before export. This reflects our strong engagement with the private sector in both production and marketing,” he stated.
Ghana’s cocoa industry, a major driver of the agricultural sector, continued its prolonged downturn, contracting by -21.4% in Q4 2024. This marks the sixth consecutive quarterly decline, following steep contractions of -26% in both Q2 and Q3.
The minister also announced additional measures designed to stimulate growth within the agricultural sector. These interventions, he noted, are crucial to improving Ghana’s agri-business environment, enhancing productivity, and making the sector more attractive to investors.
“In the short term what we have done is that we have had discussions with some tomato factories in Tema to connect to the farmers and provide ready market for them by deploying mini processing plants to the farmers in the hinterland,” he added.
