Dr. Wisdom Kofi Dogbey, Managing Director of Cocoa Marketing Company (CMC) Ghana Limited, has warned that sustaining farmer confidence is critical for Ghana’s long-term cocoa production, quality, and international competitiveness.
In a policy brief shared with the Ghana News Agency, Dr. Dogbey argued that farmer confidence should be treated as a core economic variable, not just a “soft indicator,” noting that declining trust among cocoa farmers can ripple across the entire value chain.
“Farmer confidence is the single most consequential input into Ghana’s long-term cocoa supply outlook,” he said, emphasizing that issues such as delayed payments, poor pricing communication, and perceived inefficiencies could lead to reduced production, lower quality, and increased cross-border smuggling.
Dr. Dogbey highlighted that declining confidence not only threatens physical supply but also Ghana’s reputation as a premium cocoa origin. “An origin where farmer confidence is collapsing presents not only physical supply risk but narrative risk,” he said, referencing growing international scrutiny around ethical sourcing, sustainability, and equitable supply chains.
While farm gate pricing remains a central policy tool, Dr. Dogbey stressed that confidence also depends on transparency, access to credit and inputs, extension services, and infrastructure development in cocoa-growing communities. He called for consistent, two-way engagement with farmers, including cooperative consultations and local-language media programs to explain global market trends and their effects on domestic pricing.
“The farmer is not a passive input into the value chain. The farmer is the foundation of the value chain,” Dr. Dogbey said, urging policymakers and industry players to prioritize trust-building measures alongside reforms to maintain Ghana’s competitive edge in international markets.
He further noted that Ghana’s resilience in the face of global challenges—such as climate change, supply constraints, and regulatory pressures—would hinge on the confidence and active participation of its cocoa farmers.
“The most important signal Ghana’s cocoa sector can send to the world is that its farmers are informed, respected, and confident in the system,” he concluded.
