(3 Minutes Read)
Cocoa farmers are facing destruction from the mining mafia, who illegally do the mining in farms that are growing cocoa, considerably affecting the yield and acreage under cultivation
Ghana, the world’s second-largest cocoa producer, is facing increasing risks to its precious crop from illegal miners and smugglers. Cocoa export is one of the pillars of Ghana’s economy, which is beset with high inflation at 26.4% in November. People who are encroaching into Coca-growing areas are illegal miners. Ivory Coast is the largest producer of Cocoa in the world. Together Ghana and Ivory Coast account for over 50% of world production.
Ghana has been facing this debilitating problem for the last five years or so. Cocoa farmers are facing destruction from the mining mafia, who illegally do the mining in farms that are growing cocoa, considerably affecting the yield and acreage under cultivation. The Ghana Cocoa Board (COCOBOD) has flagged this to the authorities. The downside of this continuing development is the growing number of farmers selling their land to illegal miners. Illegal miners pay US$ 500 per month to a farmer, which makes him happy since the earnings from the sale of cocoa will be far less than that amount.
There are also instances when the farmer switches over to other crops where they have been growing cocoa. The new trend is to switch over to planting rubber. Farmers complain that the increase in the price of cocoa announced by the government to the extent of 63%, which is the sole buyer of the produce, is not enough to keep the spirit of the farmers high. Later, after the procurement of cocoa, the government agencies sell to the private sector. Although this arrangement was done primarily to protect the farmers from the clutches of the foreign companies and their middlemen, in practice it does not give much leeway to the farmer. The maximum a farmer can earn by selling a ton of cocoa is US$1,822 (€1,670) per ton.
Farmers’ association pointed out that so far 2% of the total area under cocoa cultivation in Ghana has been lost to the illegal miners and cautioned that if adequate steps are not taken, more acreage of cultivable land would be lost.
According to COCOBOD, Ghana is set to harvest 1 million tonnes of cocoa between 2020 and 2021. But this figure has fallen to 750,000 tonnes for the 2022-23 harvest. The forecast for 2023-24 is between 650,000 and 700,000 tonnes due to the impact of illicit activities, besides polluting nearby rivers and landscapes.
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https://trendsnafrica.com/windfall-for-cocoa-farmers-in-ghana-government-increases-prices-by-64/
Six major regions in Ghana grow the precious bean: East, Ashanti, Brong Ahafo, Central, Volta, and West. However, due to fluctuating rainfall and declining soil fertility, production has shifted westwards. The western region is now Ghana’s main cocoa producer, accounting for 43% of the total.
