• Metascholar News Portal
• Economy , News
• January 2, 2025
• 340 views
• 3 minutes Read

Why Do Ghanaian Cocoa Farmers Continue to Struggle Financially?

In Barekese, a farming community in Ghana’s Ashanti Region, midday brings searing heat as Philip Anane, a 50-year-old cocoa farmer, walks through his parched and struggling farm. Dried brown leaves crunch underfoot, and his crops appear pale, malnourished, and diseased. “I farm because it’s what I know it’s what we grew up doing,” Anane shares while inspecting the damaged leaves. Despite decades of hard work, he feels trapped. “I’ve invested all my money in this farm, but I’ve never gained. Every season, the money I make is less than what I put in.” After nearly 20 years of farming, Anane is losing hope. “There’s nothing to show for it. I have a family and want a better life for my children. Now, I’m considering selling this farm to private investors and starting something else,” he says, gesturing toward a small plot nearby that has been converted into a poultry farm. A Shared Struggle Across Ghana In Adankwame, another farming community in the Ashanti Region, Holiata Ibrahim faces similar challenges. Taught cocoa farming by her grandmother, Holiata has worked tirelessly for years, yet her income barely supports her family. “Farming cocoa is exhausting,” she says. “It takes years of investment before trees produce, and even then, the earnings are minimal. It feels like we farmers are working for others to profit.” Ghana’s Cocoa Industry: A Century of Unequal Returns For over a century, Ghana has been a leading cocoa producer, second only to Côte d’Ivoire. Cocoa farming employs over a million Ghanaians and contributes about $2 billion annually in foreign exchange. However, despite rising global cocoa prices driven by climate challenges and fertilizer shortages, smallholder farmers like Anane and Holiata see little benefit. The Ghana Cocoa Board (COCOBOD), established in 1947, regulates cocoa prices to protect farmers from exploitation. However, many farmers argue that the prices set by COCOBOD do not reflect the true value of their labor or cocoa’s international worth. According to Oxfam, up to 90% of Ghanaian cocoa farmers earn less than a living wage, with many surviving on less than $2 a day. This leaves them struggling to meet basic needs like food, shelter, and healthcare. Systemic Challenges and Farmer Inequities Ghana’s cocoa industry faces critical challenges, including low farmer incomes, labor rights issues, environmental sustainability concerns, and a lack of transparency. The tightly controlled market, where selling cocoa outside COCOBOD’s licensed buying companies (LBCs) is illegal, limits farmers’ agency. Under Ghanaian law, COCOBOD sets prices…