Bawumia Promises Cocoa Price Relief

The Minority in Parliament has formally presented to NPP Flagbearer Dr. Mahamudu Bawumia a comprehensive report on Ghana’s cocoa sector, following an extensive tour of cocoa-growing communities.

The select committee, established at Dr. Bawumia’s initiative and led by Minority Chief Whip Hon. Frank Annoh-Dompreh (MP for Nsawam Adoagyiri), spent weeks visiting farms across Ghana’s cocoa belt. MPs sat “under the trees with farmers,” documenting grievances over recent price cuts, delayed payments, rising input costs, and the devastating impact of illegal mining on farmlands.

“These are not statistics; these are the stories of Ghanaians who feed the world with their hands,” Annoh-Dompreh said at the presentation ceremony.

Receiving the report, Dr. Bawumia commended the committee and immediately referred the findings to the NPP’s Policy Committee on Agriculture and Food Security for analysis and development of concrete policy alternatives. He invoked the NPP government’s 2017 intervention, when Ghana maintained farmgate prices despite a global downturn, and vowed to repeat that feat.

“We did it in 2017 when the world said cut the price. We found a way to protect our farmers. I am telling cocoa farmers today, we will do it again. You will smile again,” Bawumia said. He promised a formal policy announcement in the coming days.

However, the global cocoa market has since grown more volatile. The World Bank currently predicts a 50 percent drop in world market prices for cocoa in 2026, a forecast that could undermine any government commitment to shield farmers from external shocks.

In a cautionary note to political actors, Elvis Darko of The Finder observed that “cocoa prices are now unpredictable” and advised that “any announcement about cocoa should be in early 2028” to avoid the trap he says the governing NDC has fallen into.

Political analysts note that while the NPP seeks to position itself as the champion of cocoa farmers ahead of national elections, the deteriorating global price outlook presents a formidable challenge. With approximately 800,000 cocoa farming households depending on the sector, and cocoa a major contributor to Ghana’s foreign exchange earnings, the stakes remain exceptionally high.

Dr. Bawumia’s office has not indicated whether the promised relief measures will take into account the World Bank’s latest forecast. The NPP’s Agriculture Policy Committee is expected to issue its recommendations shortly.