Dr. Randy Abbey, the Chief Executive Officer of the Ghana Cocoa Board (COCOBOD), has rejected claims that the proposed Cocoa Board Bill 2026 will prohibit cocoa farmers from cultivating food crops alongside their cocoa trees. He stated that the controversy surrounding the Bill is fueled by misinformation and does not accurately reflect the intentions behind the proposed reforms.
Dr. Abbey explained that the legislation aims to tackle several longstanding issues facing Ghana’s cocoa industry, such as the destruction of cocoa farms, financing challenges, weak financial controls, low levels of domestic processing, and inadequate returns for farmers. A key provision of the proposed law would require authorisation before cocoa trees can be destroyed, uprooted, damaged, or felled, except in cases where the action is part of an approved rehabilitation program.
This measure has become necessary due to the increasing pressure on cocoa farms from illegal mining, logging, and property development. Dr. Abbey remarked, “Every single week, I receive petitions from farmers who complain that their cocoa farms are being destroyed due to various activities. If it’s not mining, it’s lumbering; if it’s not lumbering, it’s real estate development. This industry has sustained this economy from the Gold Coast era to present-day Ghana for over a century. We clearly needed to take action.”
‘This is not a ban on intercropping’
Dr Abbey said the protection being proposed for cocoa trees should not be confused with a restriction on farmers who practise intercropping. He explained that the provisions are focused on preventing the destruction of cocoa farms rate than stopping farmers from cultivating other crops alongside cocoa as part of recognised farming practices.
He also accused some individuals and groups of deliberately misrepresenting the contents of the Bill, warning that the misinformation could undermine efforts to reform the sector. “It is therefore unfortunate, still speaking about the bill, that we have persons or group of persons who have gone on a misinformation and disinformation drive, misinforming stakeholders and the public about what these reforms are about,” he said.
Financial controls and a new pricing model
Beyond protecting farms, Dr Abbey said the proposed law would bring tighter financial controls to COCOBOD. The reforms would require greater compliance with the Public Financial Management Act, with the aim of preventing financial decisions that could expose the cocoa industry to significant risks.
The Bill also proposes a new cocoa pricing arrangement under which farmers would receive 70% of the gross free-on-board value of cocoa. Under the proposed framework, producer prices could also be adjusted in response to movements in international cocoa prices.
Dr Abbey said the system is intended to ensure farmers benefit when prices on the global market increase, while limiting the financial exposure of the sector when international prices decline. He described the proposed legislation as the biggest shake-up of Ghana’s cocoa industry since the 1984 law.
The broader objective, he said, is to put the industry on a more financially sustainable footing, improve the welfare of cocoa farmers, expand domestic processing and accelerate industrialisation across the cocoa value chain.
Source: Bernard Ralph Adams
