Seminar
Dr. Shashidhara Kolavalli (Senior Researcher) “Steering the cocoasector in Ghana.”
ABSTRACT
COCOBOD, a rare all-powerful parastatal in Africa, will continue to manage Ghana’s cocoa sector. Unlike the pressures that it faced previously to liberalize—which it will face again, at least to become more accountable, given the financial difficulties it has gotten into—it now faces pressures from the market and the natural environment. Major consuming countries expect cocoa untainted by child labor use or harm to biodiversity. Climate change is projected to marginally worsen the growing conditions. Ghana succeeded in obtaining a Living Income Differential from its buyers to maintain producer prices, but as a large producer, it needs to manage its supplies to maintain balance with demand in the market for beans, which is expected to grow at only one to two percent annually. It also faces limited options to add value or move up the value chain. With near total control over the sector—and having occasionally managed the sector as a national estate—it must now make strategic decisions to guide the sector in the right direction. Various objectives that it needs to meet—increasing yields, reducing the incentives to use child labor, adapting to climate change, and maintaining biodiversity—make conflicting demands on the production technologies that it needs to persuade farmers to adopt.
COCOBOD, a rare all-powerful parastatal in Africa, will continue to manage Ghana’s cocoa sector. Unlike the pressures that it faced previously to liberalize—which it will face again, at least to become more accountable, given the financial difficulties it has gotten into—it now faces pressures from the market and the natural environment. Major consuming countries expect cocoa untainted by child labor use or harm to biodiversity. Climate change is projected to marginally worsen the growing conditions. Ghana succeeded in obtaining a Living Income Differential from its buyers to maintain producer prices, but as a large producer, it needs to manage its supplies to maintain balance with demand in the market for beans, which is expected to grow at only one to two percent annually. It also faces limited options to add value or move up the value chain. With near total control over the sector—and having occasionally managed the sector as a national estate—it must now make strategic decisions to guide the sector in the right direction. Various objectives that it needs to meet—increasing yields, reducing the incentives to use child labor, adapting to climate change, and maintaining biodiversity—make conflicting demands on the production technologies that it needs to persuade farmers to adopt.
As long as covid rules enable it, seminars will be offered in person again. Lunch will be provided.
More information about the Seminars of the Section Economics