Amid ongoing challenges in Ghana’s cocoa sector, the Ghana Cocoa Board (COCOBOD) has taken some bold steps, including cutting management salaries and adjusting cocoa prices.
Economist Professor Peter Quartey has welcomed these measures but insists that far more needs to be done to place COCOBOD on a solid financial footing.
According to Professor Quartey, COCOBOD must undergo structural reforms, particularly in staff rationalisation.
He cautioned against mass layoffs, noting that, in a period of high unemployment, dismissing workers outright would worsen the situation.
Instead, he suggested that redundant staff could be redeployed to other ministries, departments, and agencies where their skills would be better utilised.
“I think the signalling effect is good. That is, you are signalling to farmers, to Ghanaians, to everybody, to the global community, that as managers of the cocoa board, you want to take part of the responsibility to address the problem. I wish we were told how much that would be. I mean, there’s 20 percent senior management, 10 percent other management staff. What is the function? How much money are we talking about? How far can this money go?” he quizzed.
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“If there are too many staff operating at COCOBOD, let’s do some rationalisation. And they can be absorbed or sent to other ministries, departments, and agencies, where they’ll be more useful, rather than laying them off, because there are no jobs,” he said.
The economist further stated, “You can’t just lay people off. You have to give a human face to it… But then keeping them and paying so much in salaries, I don’t think is the right way to go.”
COCOBOD last week announced that its Board of Directors will forgo sitting allowances for the remainder of the 2025/26 cocoa season.
In addition, executive management has taken a 20% pay cut, while senior staff salaries have been reduced by 10%. These measures are expected to save the organisation about GH¢5 million each month.
Professor Quartey acknowledged the symbolic importance of these cuts, describing them as a signal of shared sacrifice to farmers, Ghanaians, and the international community.
However, he questioned the scale of the savings, asking for clarity on how far these reductions would go in addressing COCOBOD’s financial challenges.
The government has also revised the producer price of cocoa to GH¢41,392 per tonne (GH¢2,587 per bag) for the remainder of the 2025/26 crop season.
COCOBOD officials explained that the adjustment is intended to protect farmers in the face of declining global cocoa prices.
SA/MA
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