The Ghana Cocoa Board (COCOBOD) has acknowledged outstanding payments to licensed cocoa buying companies but says the situation is not new and does not mean the Board cannot settle its debt obligations.
The response follows a claim by the Chamber of Cocoa Marketers Ghana that licensed cocoa buying companies are owed about GH¢4 billion by COCOBOD, raising concerns about their ability to secure financing to purchase cocoa in the new cocoa season.
Speaking on Eyewitness News on Tuesday, September 15, COCOBOD’s Head of Public Affairs, Jerome Kwaku Sam, said outstanding payments to licensed buying companies could occur after the end of a cocoa season.
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“If the season ended just about a month and a half ago, it is only reasonable, logical, that there possibly could be some outstanding amounts that COCOBOD would have to make to the licensed buying companies or the chamber,” he said.
Mr Sam explained that licensed buying companies purchase cocoa on behalf of COCOBOD before submitting Cocoa Takeover Receipts (CTORs) to the Board for payment.
According to him, COCOBOD has prioritised payments to cocoa farmers before settling outstanding obligations owed to licensed buying companies.
He said the decision was based on the importance of cocoa farmers to the entire cocoa value chain.
“Our farmers as well as the licensed buying companies. So between these two stakeholders, we thought that prioritising the cocoa farmer who does the cultivation and who makes available the beans for us to give in purchase and sell ought to be prioritised,” he said.
Mr Sam said COCOBOD is now preparing to engage licensed buying companies and the Chamber of Cocoa Marketers Ghana to address the outstanding payments.
“Plans are far advanced to meet with the licensed buying companies or the chamber to iron out all outstanding payments that we have,” he said.
The COCOBOD official also linked the outstanding payments to the Board’s transition from its previous financing model to a new funding arrangement.
He said the transition has involved consultations and discussions with relevant stakeholders as COCOBOD works to establish the new financing structure.
Mr Sam stressed that outstanding payments to licensed cocoa buying companies were not a new development for COCOBOD.
“No, this is not new,” he said.
He noted that licensed buying companies had previously carried outstanding balances from one cocoa season into another.
Mr Sam also referenced concerns raised by the Chamber of Cocoa Marketers Ghana as far back as 2023 regarding outstanding obligations owed by COCOBOD to licensed buying companies.
He clarified, however, that outstanding payments should not automatically be interpreted as evidence that COCOBOD is unable to meet its debt obligations.
“I am not in any stretch of imagination saying that that should be the case, but I am only stating that if we have an outstanding like this, it does not epitomize Cocoa Board’s inability to settle its debt obligation to the licensed buying companies,” he said.
The GH¢4 billion debt claim has renewed attention on the financial position of licensed cocoa buying companies ahead of the new cocoa season.
Licensed buying companies depend on financing to purchase cocoa beans from farmers, making timely payments from COCOBOD an important issue for businesses operating within the cocoa supply chain.
Mr Sam said COCOBOD is aware of the financial pressures facing licensed buying companies and was working towards arrangements that would help them secure the financing needed to purchase cocoa for the new season.
The Board is therefore expected to engage the affected companies as it works to resolve the outstanding payments.
CNR