The National Democratic Congress (NDC) Majority Caucus in Parliament has attributed a significant portion of the Ghana Cocoa Board’s (COCOBOD) financial crisis to a sharp collapse in global cocoa prices.
The Caucus said cocoa prices fell by nearly 76 per cent between January 2025 and February 2026, describing it as the steepest decline in three decades.
Addressing the media in Accra on Thursday, Mr Isaac Adongo, Chairman of the Finance Committee of Parliament, rejected claims that the absence of forward sales was responsible for the current crisis.
“The claim that the absence of forward sales caused the current crisis is therefore incorrect. Both forward and spot prices fell below US$6,000 at the trough, implying that even full forward coverage could not have sustained the earlier projected FOB level,” he stated.
The Caucus explained that COCOBOD had forward-sold approximately 530,000 tonnes of cocoa, representing about 82 per cent of the projected 650,000-tonne crop for the 2025/26 season.
Despite that coverage, the sector suffered severe revenue losses due to the sharp fall in international prices, it said.
According to the Caucus, over-committed contracts from the 2023/24 season further compounded the situation, resulting in costly rollovers and a total revenue gap estimated at nearly US$927 million.
The NDC Majority maintained that the combined impact of external market shocks and legacy contractual obligations had created significant financial strain for COCOBOD.
It stressed the need for urgent reforms to stabilise the cocoa sector, protect farmers’ incomes and restore the Board’s financial health.
