By Benjamin Nii Nai Anyetei
The Chief Executive Officer of the Ghana Cocoa Board (COCOBOD), Dr. Randy Abbey, has acknowledged growing concerns among cocoa farmers over delayed payments, describing the situation as challenging and driven by multiple factors.
Speaking to journalists in Accra on Thursday, February 6, he said COCOBOD, the government, and the Ministry of Finance are collaborating to resolve the payment issues. He appealed to farmers to exercise patience as efforts are underway to protect the interests of all stakeholders, particularly cocoa farmers.
“Now, I have said that we can appreciate the concerns, the pain, the apprehensions, the confusion as far as our dear farmers are concerned, and as I have indicated, this is an issue that has a multiplicity of factors, and COCOBOD, Government and the Finance Ministry are seriously looking at how to address the issue. So we would only ask for a bit more patience. We can understand what our dear farmers are going through, but what we are asking for is a little bit more patience while we find a solution to this particular issue. We believe that we will come up with a solution in the interest of everybody, especially our farmers,” he said.
Mr. Abbey’s remarks come amid mounting pressure from the Minority Caucus in Parliament, which has called on the government and COCOBOD to immediately settle outstanding payments of more than GH¢10 billion owed to cocoa farmers and Licensed Buying Companies (LBCs).
Speaking to journalists on Wednesday, February 5, the Ranking Member of the Food, Agriculture, and Cocoa Affairs Committee, Isaac Yaw Opoku, said cocoa farmers have not been paid for cocoa beans supplied on credit since November 2025. He warned that the delays have worsened farmers’ living conditions and pose a serious threat to the stability of the cocoa industry and the wider economy.
Mr. Opoku further demanded that COCOBOD reimburse all outstanding cocoa take-over receipts owed to LBCs and ensure prompt payment for subsequent deliveries to prevent a recurrence of the current crisis.
