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The Ghana Cocoa Board on Tuesday signed a $ 1.3 billion syndicated loan agreement with local and international banks for the purchase of cocoa for the 2020/21 season.
In August, Parliament approved the syndicated loan, which carries an interest rate of 1.75 percent.
It was the first time that the agreement had to be signed virtually with the 24 international and four local banks because of the coronavirus pandemic.
International banks include Amro Bank, Bank of China Limited in London, Standard Chartered Bank, Industrial and Commercial Bank of China, and Ghana International Bank, Cooperative Rabobank, UA, and Societe General.
The local banks are Ecobank Ghana Limited, Societe Generale Ghana Limited, Absa Ghana Limited and Stanbic Bank Ghana Limited.
Joseph Boahen Aidoo, executive director of the Ghana Cocoa Board, said the facility would be used to purchase at least 900,000 tonnes of cocoa from farmers and would be reimbursed in more than seven months.
He commended the trustworthy financial institutions for their continued confidence in the operations of the country’s cocoa industry, culminating in a constant willingness to gather resources for annual syndications.
“We have also restored this trust by ensuring that we never defaulted on loans since the 1992/1993 harvest season, when the first was signed. On several occasions we have repaid the loan ahead of schedule. The 2019/2020 syndicated loan, for example, was repaid two months ahead of schedule, ”he said.
To ensure better income and better livelihoods for farmers, Mr. Aidoo said that Ghana and Côte d’Ivoire introduced the Living Income Differential pricing mechanism which had resulted in the addition of $ 400 to the price of each ton of cocoa sold by the two countries.
With this, he said that President Akufo-Addo announced a 28 percent increase in cocoa prices on the farm for the 2020/2021 harvest season, which begins on October 1, 2021.
He explained that Ghanaian farmers would take home ¢ 660 GH per 64 kg bag of premium cocoa sold.
The CEO said that, in addition to remunerative producer prices, the government would implement the Productivity Improvement Programs and other interventions such as the National Cocoa Rehabilitation Program, Manual Pollination Program, Mass Pruning Exercise, Mass Fumigation Exercise, Free Seedling Distribution, Subsidized Fertilizer Distribution and the Cacao Roads Improvement Initiative, to ensure a sustainable cocoa economy and better socioeconomic livelihoods for farmers.
Dr. Owusu-Afriyie Akoto, Minister of Food and Agriculture, thanked the financial institutions for the gesture and stressed that the credit line would help the country achieve its production targets.
He pledged to strengthen partnerships for agricultural sector development, adding that the future of Ghana’s cocoa sector looked brighter.
Ms Yuriko Noguchi, speaking on behalf of the main organizers of the loan, commended COCOBOD management for their professionalism and commitment to the success of the cocoa sector.
She promised financial institutions continued support for COCOBOD to help farmers improve productivity and accelerate economic growth.
Source: GNA
