Ghana will not be returning to the 32-year-old cocoa syndicated loan financing mechanism, moving to completely end its reliance on foreign capital to fund cocoa purchases in favor of a domestic bond-led model.
Finance Minister Dr. Cassiel Ato Forson announced the shift Thursday as part of a “comprehensive” overhaul of the world’s second-largest cocoa producer’s industry.
The reforms, triggered by an emergency cabinet session on Feb. 11, respond to a sharp drop in global cocoa prices and mounting liquidity challenges that have left many farmers waiting months for payment.
“The world market price has dropped significantly from an average of $7,200 per ton to $4,100 per ton, making Ghana’s cocoa beans uncompetitive and creating liquidity challenges,” Dr. Forson said at a press conference in the capital.
A New Financial Architecture
At the heart of the reforms is the replacement of the decades-old offshore syndicated loan model with domestic “cocoa bonds.”
These bonds will be used to raise a revolving fund for the Ghana Cocoa Board (COCOBOD), allowing for more flexible liquidity management throughout the crop year.
The move follows the collapse of a buyer-led financing model attempted in 2024 and aims to revive indigenous licensed buying companies that had been sidelined under previous arrangements.
To support this transition, the government says it plans to introduce a new Cocoa Board Bill to Parliament, which will mandate an automatic adjustment of producer prices based on world market trends and exchange rates.
Price Cuts and Farmer Protections
Reflecting the new market reality, the Producer Price Review Committee (PPRC) slashed the cocoa producer price paid to farmers by 28.6% for the remainder of the 2025/2026 season.
The new farmgate price is set at 41,392 Ghana cedis per metric ton (2,587 Ghana cedis per bag), down from the 58,000 Ghana cedis announced in October.
Despite the cut, Dr. Forson emphasized that the new price represents 90% of the achieved gross Free On Board (FOB) value, a move designed to “cushion the farmer” against the global market’s volatility.
The upcoming legislation will guarantee farmers a minimum of 70% of the gross FOB price in the future.
Domestic Value Addition
The reforms also signal an aggressive push toward domestic value addition. Starting in the 2026/2027 season, at least 50% of all cocoa beans produced in Ghana must be processed locally, according to the government in line with the new reforms.
“Cabinet has also directed that beginning from 2026/2027 crop season, a minimum of 50% of all cocoa beans should be processed locally,” Dr. Forson said, adding that the state-owned Cocoa Processing Company (CPC) and Produce Buying Company (PBC) will be revived to lead this charge.
“We also strongly believe that when we continue to add value to Ghana cocoa instead of exporting [the raw beans], we will definitely bring in foreign exchange into the country, create employment, and bring back the cocoa industry,” said Edmund Poku, managing director of Niche Cocoa, in a reaction to the government’s planned reforms.
His company, Niche Cocoa, with an installed capacity of 90,000 MT per annum, processes cocoa into semi-finished products, namely cocoa butter, liquor, and cocoa cake, for export to the international market.
Forensic Oversight
Beyond the sweeping structural changes, the government is taking aim at past mismanagement.
The country’s attorney general has been instructed to conduct a forensic audit and criminal investigation into COCOBOD’s activities over the last eight years.
The board will also be stripped of its responsibility for road construction, with future “cocoa roads” to be financed through a $500 million World Bank facility by the Ministry for Roads.
“Cabinet has also directed that, with immediate effect, there should be a transfer of road liabilities worth 4.35 billion Ghanaian cedis to the Ministry of Roads and Highways and the Ministry of Finance,” the finance minister said.
Available records indicate that from 2014 to 2024, Cocobod awarded cocoa contracts of up to 26.5 billion Ghana cedis, with 21.5 billion Ghana cedis of contracts awarded between 2018 and 2021.
Industry watchers have long fingered procurement-driven mismanagement by Cocobod as the main cause of its liquidity woes.
Despite an agreement under an IMF program in 2023 to rationalize Cocobod’s commitment of 21.7 billion Ghana cedis to 6.9 billion, the erstwhile management of Cocobod is said to have failed to conduct this exercise.
The exercise has subsequently been completed under the supervision of the Ministry of Finance and the Minister responsible for Roads. The Minister of Roads and Cocobod jointly conducted this rationalization exercise to reduce the exposure on cocoa roads.
“Upon the completion of the exercise, the total exposure of 21.7 billion Ghana cedis has since been reduced to 4.35 billion Ghana cedis,” Dr. Ato Forson reported.
He added that the current liabilities of 4.35 billion are to be transferred to the Ministry of Roads and Finance for payment.
The Ghanaian government has conceded that cocoa road construction accounts for a significant part of the financial difficulties of Cocobod.
Streamlining Cocobod Operations
While cocoa farmers are the first to bite the bullet, the institution of Ghana Cocoa Board itself has not been left off the hook.
President John Mahama’s Cabinet, after its crunch Cocoa Sector Emergency meeting, has also directed the Ministry of Finance to initiate immediate reforms at Cocobod to streamline their operations and cut costs.
Several studies have often identified overstaffing at Ghana’s cocoa sector regulator—COCOBOD—as a key cause of its inefficiency.
“Wasteful and uncontrolled expenditure practices are to be curtailed immediately,” Dr. Forson stated.
“Cocoa has always been the mainstay of our economy,” Dr. Forson insisted. “I wish to assure [farmers] that these reforms will protect the interest of the cocoa farmer and the cocoa sector.”
- Ghana Unveils New Cocoa Financing Model in Sweeping Sector Reforms - February 12, 2026
- Ghana Cuts Cocoa Producer Price As World Market Price Tumble - February 12, 2026
- Ghana’s Savanna Grassland Sees First Cocoa Plantation - December 9, 2025