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Form alliances to demand reforms in cocoa pricing at int’l level – Emillie Durochat
The Deputy Director of Commerce Equitable France, Emillie Durochat has called on cocoa-producing countries to form alliances to demand a reform in the mechanism for setting prices at the international level.
For her, the continued rise in the cost of farm inputs such as fertilisers, pesticides and farm machinery as well as the cost of labour were affecting cocoa production, causing them to lose huge sums of money.
“If we want to end poverty, deforestation, child labour among others, there is the need for all to come together to double the price of cocoa on the international markets, make enough profits to cater for their families” she stated.
Madam Durochat made the clarion call at a Cocoa advocacy workshop in Accra on the theme “structuring the coordination of our platforms to bring with a common voice the essential equitable sharing of value within the cocoa value chain”.
It sought to stimulate talks around sustainable Cocoa and was jointly organised by the National Producer Platforms of Ghana, Togo, Benin, Cote d’Ivoire and France.
It brought together over 50 stakeholders in the Cocoa sector.
She bemoaned how Cocoa producers received only six per cent out of the $100,000 billion money made yearly.
Frank Okyere, Manager in charge of Environment and Production at Kuapa cocoa, said farmers were faced with a huge challenge which was causing them to be poor and therefore called for the government’s intervention.
“The rising cost of production is coming from all angles such as fertilisers, cutlasses and machinery used in spraying and pruning.
“The prices of equipment are going up and the farm gate price keeps fluctuating and this does not reflect in the high rising cost of production, causing farmers to lose huge sums of money,” he said.
The Technical Manager for the Côte d’Ivoire – Ghana Cocoa Initiative (CIGCI) Madam Tawiah Agyarko-Kwarteng stated that, although the Living Income Differential Pricing was established not long ago, farmers are still not benefiting from their produce.
“At the Côte d’Ivoire Ghana Cocoa Initiative, we have been focused on representing our two countries to engage in a collaborative discussion with the various actors in the sector. Volatile pricing has been a problem for the cocoa sector which is not allowing the farmers to get the true benefits that they should be getting. We have actively engaged over the past few months with partners in the industry to ensure that we kick start conversations on the actions that we all need to take to help our farmers get better pricing,” she said.
President of Fair Trade Platform Cote D’Ivoire, Fortin Bley on his part, said there was no way the government would be able to sustain the cocoa sector if they did not address the issue of pricing adding that it was worrying to note that cocoa communities and farmers who produced such important crop continued to remain poor.
He said there was a need for the government to develop policies and provide the infrastructure that would change the fortunes of cocoa-growing communities.
BY BENEDICTA GYIMAAH FOLLEY
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GEXIM deepens relations with US EXIM Bank
A management team of the Ghana Export – Import Bank (GEXIM) led by the Acting Chief Executive, Sylvester Mensah met with the leadership of the Export–Import Bank of the United States (US EXIM) on Wednesday April 23, 2025 in Washington DC, United States of America.
The Acting President and Chairman of US EXIM, Mr. James C. Cruse and Vice President, International Relations, Ms. Isabel Galdiz received the GEXIM delegation, which included Deputy CEO for Banking, Mr. Moses Klu Mensah and Head of International Cooperation, Mr. Jonathan Christopher Koney at the headquarters of US EXIM.
The meeting offered the GEXIM team the opportunity to share the strategic direction of the Bank in line with the resetting agenda of the President of the Republic, His Excellency John Dramani Mahama for the repositioning of the Ghanaian economy into an export-led one by providing the requisite investment to Ghanaian businesses.
Mr. James C. Cruse expressed US EXIM’s eagerness to deepen its existing relations with GEXIM and proposed the signing of a new Cooperative Framework Agreement following the expiration of a Memorandum of Understanding signed in 2019 to utilize US EXIM’s medium term loan guarantees to procure machinery by GEXIM for qualified Ghanaian Small and Medium-sized Enterprises (SMEs).
Mr.Sylvester Mensah thanked the Acting President and Chairman of US EXIM for hosting the GEXIM delegation and reaffirmed the Ghanaian government’s commitment to strengthening trade and investment between Ghana and its global partners for economic transformation of Ghana with GEXIM playing a pivotal role.
The two teams will be meeting on the sidelines of the 2025 US EXIM Annual Conference on 29th and April 30, 2025 to explore possible areas of collaboration and matching Ghanaian businesses to American companies. The meeting ended with an exchange of gifts.
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Many SOEs have been used as mere instruments for personal wealth accumulation –Pres.Mahama
President John Dramani Mahama has expressed concern over the misuse of State-Owned Enterprises (SOEs) for personal financial gain by individuals in leadership positions.
Speaking during a meeting with Chief Executives of specified entities under the State Interest and Governance Authority (SIGA) on Thursday, March 13, the President directly attributed the dire state of SOEs to their leadership, accusing chief executives, management teams, and governing boards of prioritising personal enrichment over organisational efficiency.
He pointed to bloated budgets, unjustified allowances, and unnecessary expenditures as factors draining public funds while SOEs continue to rely on government bailouts.
“Many SOEs have been used as mere instruments for personal wealth accumulation by appointees. The chief executives, management, and boards of these enterprises are responsible for this situation. Some SOEs have become perennial loss-makers, draining public funds with bloated budgets, unjustified allowances, and unnecessary expenditures while relying on government bailouts as if entitled to them. Many of these entities are at their lowest point in the entire history of the Fourth Republic,” he said.
President Mahama further noted that many SOEs have been plagued by inefficiencies, corruption, and mismanagement, leading to consistent financial losses. He cited the 2023 State Ownership Report by the State Interests and Governance Authority (SIGA), which highlighted systemic inefficiencies and wasteful expenditures within these entities.
He therefore reaffirmed his commitment to reforming under-performing SOEs and ensuring they serve national interests.
He warned that loss-making SOEs will no longer be tolerated and will either be merged, privatised, or closed.
“I will assess you based on your performance. If you do not align with the pace of the reset agenda, you may be asked to step aside. If that adds to the horror movie, so be it,” he added.
Source: Myjoyonline.com
