Source: Ebenezer De-Gaulle
The Ghana Catholic Bishops Conference is warning that the country’s cocoa sector is in crisis, saying delayed payments and reduced producer prices are driving farmers into debt and hardship.
The Ghana Catholic Bishops’ Conference said in a statement that many farmers have gone months without payment for cocoa deliveries, leaving families unable to cover school fees, repay loans, or hire labor. The bishops cautioned that the situation is worsening rural poverty and pushing some toward illegal mining.
“Equity and justice demand that accumulated surpluses from profitable years be used to support farmers in difficult times,” the statement said. “Penalizing them for circumstances beyond their control is morally indefensible.”
The bishops also pointed to Ghana’s declining share of the global cocoa market, where Ecuador, Nigeria and Cameroon are emerging as strong competitors. Climate stress and land degradation from illegal mining were cited as additional threats to productivity.
Bishop Matthew Kwasi Gyamfi, president of the Conference, urged the government and stakeholders to immediately pay arrears, restructure finances transparently, and invest in youth and research.
“The rescue of Ghana’s cocoa industry is a moral duty,” Gyamfi said. “Justice for cocoa farmers is justice for Ghana.”