They promised to pay GHS6,000 per tonne when they were seeking power —Mahama’s Gov’t Exposed

Ofoase/Ayirebi MP Kojo Oppong Nkrumah, who servesas the Ranking Member on Parliament’sEconomyCommittee, has expressed strong dissatisfactionwith the government’s revised cocoaproducerprice, arguing that the increase does not offerfarmers adequate financial relief, GhanaWeb reports.

In an interview with Eyewitness News, the oppositionlawmaker described the adjustment as “hogwash,”insisting that the headline increase in dollarterms creates a misleading impression of theactual gainscocoa farmers will receive.

The Producer Price Review Committee, underthe chairmanship of Finance Minister Dr. CassielAtoForson, announced that the producer pricefor cocoa would rise from $3,100 to $5,040per tonne forthe 2025/2026 season. The newrate represents an increase of 62.58 per cent.

Despite the seemingly substantial adjustment,Oppong Nkrumah argued that farmers would receiveonlyan additional GH¢128 per bag, bringing theamount from GH¢3,100 to GH¢3,228. In his view,this increaseis insufficient to meet the needs andfinancial expectations of cocoa-growing communities.

He explained that what matters most to farmersis the actual amount paid into their hands foreachbag of cocoa, rather than the dollar figuresused in international market calculations orthe Free-On-Board pricing system.

According to him, international price statisticsoffer little comfort to farmers if they do nottranslateinto significant improvements in theirearnings and living conditions.

Oppong Nkrumah further criticised the governmentfor allegedly reneging on its campaign commitmenttopay GH¢6,000 per tonne of cocoa. He arguedthat the new rate falls considerably short of thatpledgeand represents a letdown for producerswho expected better returns.

The controversy has renewed scrutiny of thegovernment’s approach to cocoa pricing andagriculturalsupport. Opponents contend that theadministration is focusing on favourable publicityrather thanproviding substantial economicbenefits to farmers. Supporters of the government,however, maintain thatglobal cocoa marketconditions impose limitations on the producerprice that can realistically be offered.