The Minority Caucus in Parliament has accused the government of failing to prioritise the welfare of cocoa farmers, despite spending billions of cedis to stabilise the economy.
Minority Chief Whip and Member of Parliament for Nsawam-Adoagyiri, Mr Frank Kwabena Annoh-Dompreh, said the government had shown little concern for cocoa farmers by delaying payments owed to them.
Speaking during an interaction with cocoa farmers at Wamfie in the Bono Region, Mr Annoh-Dompreh argued that government could have used part of the GH¢117 billion reportedly spent in 2026 to stabilise the cedi to settle outstanding payments to farmers.
According to him, allocating even GH¢11 billion from that amount would have been enough to address the concerns of cocoa farmers across the country.
He also criticised the government’s decision to purchase new aircraft, insisting that the money could have been redirected to support farmers.
“The cost of one aircraft alone could have been used to pay cocoa farmers,” he said.
Mr Annoh-Dompreh further claimed that the Minority would continue to raise the concerns of cocoa farmers until the government takes action.
He said the Minority’s visit to the area was intended to engage directly with farmers, understand their concerns and advocate on their behalf.
Dr Isaac Yaw Opoku, Member of Parliament for Offinso South and Ranking Member on Food, Agriculture and Cocoa Affairs, also criticised the government for failing to increase the cocoa producer price to GH¢6,000 as promised during the 2024 election campaign.
He alleged that additional payments made by foreign cocoa buyers, including the Living Income Differential and quality-related premiums, had not reached farmers.
According to Dr Opoku, foreign buyers pay an additional $400 per tonne of cocoa under the Living Income Differential arrangement and another $300 linked to the quality of cocoa beans produced in Ghana.
He claimed that farmers had not benefited directly from these payments.
Dr Opoku also questioned recent government claims that funds had been released to pay cocoa farmers and called for greater transparency regarding payments made within the cocoa value chain.
He urged farmers not to release their lands for illegal mining activities, saying future policies would better protect the cocoa sector.
Member of Parliament for Ejisu, Mr Kwabena Boateng, also appealed to the government to respond to the concerns of cocoa farmers and improve their livelihoods.
