Need to depoliticize banter on cocoa cost

 Need to depoliticize banter on cocoa cost

For a long period, Ghana's cocoa industry plays had a main impact on the nation's economy. Millions of Ghanaians still view the cocoa industry as an important source of "security," and it continues to provide them with a means of subsistence. Given the developing worldwide interest in cocoa, the absence of an elective harvest, and the acknowledgment of the medical advantages connected to cocoa, the ware will probably keep on being a significant yield from here on out.

However, the cocoa industry in Ghana faces numerous obstacles. The majority of farmers are unable to afford essential inputs like fertilizers and sprays, which results in a lack of productivity. This issue is made worse by the old age and poor health of many farmers, as well as their difficulty obtaining labor to help them on their farms because young people have moved away, creating a severe labor shortage and driving up the cost of labor.

Despite a sharp drop in global prices that has seen cocoa futures fall by about a third, Ghana, the world's second-largest cocoa producer after Cote d'Ivoire, has been reluctant to lower the price it offers to its farmers. In June, the Ghana Cocoa Board (COCOBOD) stated that it would not be able to pay bonuses this year because it was paying farmers $400 more per tonne than the current level of world prices.

COCOBOD was using money from a stabilization fund that could be gone by next year if prices don't rise again. Cocoa farmers are not sufficiently motivated to provide us with a yield that can compete with that of our neighboring Cote d'Ivoire, despite the significance of cocoa to our economic development. The perceptions that young people have about cocoa farming go beyond all of this. Young cocoa farmers have few role models to look up to. They don't see the sector's potential for a profitable livelihood because they see older generations working hard for little pay.

The test to repay our cocoa ranchers satisfactorily has been intensified by the drop in the global cost of the item, convincing the public authority not to build the maker cost of cocoa. The Daily Graphic proposes that our cocoa farmers be provided with alternative means of subsisting during these trying times in order to help alleviate this recurring issue.

We believe that a farmer's willingness to participate in additional or alternative livelihood activities is influenced, among other things, by the possibility of earning additional income, the awareness that there is a ready market for whatever product they have for sale, and the knowledge that they can get technical support when they need it. The Daily Graphic asks the government to depoliticize cocoa industry issues so that we can support the industry that has been the backbone of the economy with one voice despite our diversity.

We are concerned whenever the political entertainers and obligation conveyors talk about the area as they acquaint the outrageous politicization with the conversation regardless of whether to build the maker cost. Since everyone is aware of the situation in the sector, the Daily Graphic advises caution when discussing the cocoa industry's future. Let politics out of the discussion and place Ghana first, and farmers in particular, at the center.