The Minority Caucus in Parliament has called on the government and the Ghana Cocoa Board (COCOBOD) to immediately pay cocoa farmers for beans sold since November 2025, warning that continued delays are pushing farmers and the cocoa sector into a deepening crisis.

Addressing journalists in Accra on Thursday, February 5, the Ranking Member on Parliament’s Food, Agriculture and Cocoa Affairs Committee, Isaac Yaw Opoku, said many cocoa farmers have gone unpaid for more than three months, despite delivering their produce to licensed buyers.

According to Mr Opoku, Licensed Buying Companies (LBCs) are unable to pay farmers because COCOBOD has failed to reimburse them for cocoa already taken over. He disclosed that COCOBOD currently owes LBCs more than GH¢10 billion, leaving many companies financially constrained and unable to continue buying cocoa.

“As a result, farmers are being forced to sell their cocoa on credit, at heavy discounts, or return home with their produce unsold,” he said, warning that the situation poses serious risks to the cocoa industry and the wider national economy.

Mr Opoku accused the government and COCOBOD of failing to meet their obligations to the LBCs, many of which borrowed from banks and off-taker traders to pre-finance cocoa purchases. He dismissed claims by COCOBOD that sufficient funds had been released to support cocoa buying, describing such assertions as misleading.

“The reality is that farmers have not been paid for cocoa sold to the Mahama-led NDC government since November last year,” he stated, insisting that cocoa farmers deserve timely payment for their labour.

He painted a grim picture of the human impact of the delays, citing cases of farmers unable to afford medication, pay school fees, or care for sick relatives. Mr Opoku added that some farmers were even forced to postpone Christmas celebrations because they had not been paid for their cocoa.

The Minority also criticised the government for failing to honour campaign promises made ahead of the December 7 elections. Mr Opoku recalled assurances by then-opposition figures, including Dr Eric Opoku and Dr Cassiel Ato Forson, who promised producer prices of GH¢6,000 and GH¢7,000 per bag. However, he noted that the current farmgate price stands at GH¢3,625 per 64kg bag and warned against any move to further reduce the price, describing it as a betrayal of trust.