Ghana Cocoa Board (COCOBOD) has supplied 210,000 tonnes out of the rolled-over contract, resulting in a revenue loss of US$ 840 million for both COCOBOD and the Ghanaian farmer.
In the 2023/2024 crop season, COCOBOD could not supply 333,767 tonnes of cocoa, which sold at US$ 2,600 per tonne.
President John Dramani Mahama, who made this known when he presented his first State of the Nation Address (SONA) to Parliament in Accra on Thursday, said the management of COCOBOD rolled over these contracts into the 2024/2025 cocoa season.
He said COCOBOD and the Ghanaian farmer would lose another US$495 million when the Board finished supplying the remaining rolled-over contracts.
This implies that for every tonne of cocoa delivered this year in fulfilment of the rolled-over contracts, COCOBOD and the Ghanaian farmer would lose US$ 4,000 in revenue.
He said COCOBOD, the hope of cocoa farmers, was also highly indebted, and its balance sheet indicates a total debt of GH₵ 32.5 billion, of which GH₵ 9.7 billion was due to be paid at the end of September 2025.
Additionally, cocoa road commitments alone total GH₵ 21.7 billion, of which only GH₵ 4.4 billion was included in the total debt of GH₵ 32.5 billion.
The President said the debt had arisen mainly because of the decision in 2019 and 2020 to award road contracts worth over US$1 billion because of the election.
By Morkporkpor Anku