By Love Wilhelmina Abanonave
Lawyer and historian Yaw Anokye Frimpong has urged the government to revive domestic jute production and put idle military lands to use for agriculture, arguing that Ghana’s cocoa export system is weakened by reliance on imported packaging materials.
Speaking during a panel discussion on GTV’s Breakfast Show, Mr Anokye Frimpong said Ghana’s position as the world’s second-largest cocoa exporter is undermined by the country’s dependence on imported jute bags used for packaging cocoa beans.
“Today, Ghana is the world’s second leading exporter of cocoa and before you can export cocoa, you need a jute bag, which we now import from Bangladesh and India,” he said.
According to him, the dependence on foreign suppliers means the Ghana Cocoa Board incurs debt in foreign currency before cocoa exports are made.
He recalled that Ghana previously operated a jute factory in Kumasi, which has since shut down, leaving the country without a local supply chain for a key component of its cocoa industry.
The historian linked the collapse of local industry to broader concerns about youth unemployment and recruitment into the security services.
Referring to the deaths of young women during a security services recruitment exercise at El-Wak Stadium last year, he proposed that the Ghana Armed Forces make portions of its vast lands available for agricultural projects involving young people seeking employment opportunities.
“If 10,000 people apply to become soldiers or police officers, it is very easy. We have vast areas of land. The Ghana Army is now going into farming. Send these young people there to farm and within the next three months, we will start exporting to other countries,” he said.
Ghana produces about 800,000 metric tonnes of cocoa annually, making it the world’s second-largest producer after Côte d’Ivoire. The Ghana Cocoa Board is responsible for the purchasing, marketing and export of cocoa.
In recent years, the Ghana Armed Forces has expanded its involvement in commercial agriculture as part of the government’s broader food security agenda. The military says it is cultivating thousands of acres of maize, rice and vegetables to reduce reliance on food imports and support military logistics.
