- Ghana is trying to promote its Cocoa on the Emirati market.
- The Government of Ghana has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the United Arab Emirates (UAE) Food and Beverage Manufacturers Group to promote the product in the UAE market.
- The agreement will provide the basis for investment in cocoa contract farming or chocolate production.
Ghana is trying to promote its Cocoa on the Emirati market. The Government of Ghana has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the United Arab Emirates (UAE) Food and Beverage Manufacturers Group to promote the product in the UAE market. The agreement will provide the basis for investment through cocoa contract farming or chocolate production.
Mr Yofi Grant, the Chief Executive Officer of the Ghana Investment Promotion Centre(GIPC) revealed this while addressing the first edition of the ‘Chocolatarium- the Business of Chocolate’. He added that a few Emirati companies are already exploring the possibility of acquiring old factories or the setting up of new factories for chocolate manufacturing.
Almost 4 million farming households in Ghana are engaged in Cocoa production. However, the low yield of cocoa and lack of processing facilities limit the growth of the industry. Ghana exports mainly raw cocoa beans. Therefore the partnership is expected to give a boost to the cocoa industry. Ghana’s earnings from Cocoa export remains low and the Government is keen to boost processing capacity. There is a growing need for local investment into value addition of cocoa to help indigenous chocolate manufacturers improve their capacity to meet high demands of the product. Ghanaian Government plans to support local cocoa producers to improve their capacities to compete and add value to the commodity under the Ghana Cares programme. Government’s agenda is to modernise the production system through the cocoa productivity enhancement programme. Rehabilitation of cocoa farms, mechanised pruning, fertiliser subsidies, hand spraying, artificial hand pollination, irrigation and distribution of cocoa seeds and continuous farmer education on good agronomic practices are some of the measures introduced to boost the production.
