Joseph Boahen Aidoo with the EU delegation
Chief Executive Officer of the Ghana Cocoa Board (COCOBOD), Joseph Boahen-Aidoo has reiterated his call on the European Union (EU) to reconsider the element of cocoa pricing in its legislation to help sustain the industry.
The CEO said this when a four-member delegation from the EU called on him to discuss issues on sustainability, traceability and child labour within the sector.
According to him, the legislation in its current form cannot improve incomes of cocoa farmers.
Mr. Aidoo said Ghana is committed to maintaining its status as the best producer of premium quality cocoa in the world, in addition to ensuring that cocoa cultivation is devoid of deforestation and use of services of children while urging the EU to fulfil its part of the social contract.
“Although deforestation is a huge challenge, we must consider that cocoa is the only crop which has preserved Ghana’s forest and supported global effort,” he added.
On the issue of pricing, he mentioned that the Living Income Differential (LID) policy was introduced to mitigate poverty among cocoa farmers in Côte D’Ivoire and Ghana and it was therefore imperative that attention is paid to the cocoa farmer who forms the basis for all the discussions.
He commended the EU for various support and its ‘Sustainable Cocoa Initiative’ to enhance the sustainability of cocoa production and trade while urging the EU not to relent in paying the right prices for cocoa.
Head of Cooperation, EU delegation to Ghana, Massimo Nina, said the EU was committed to building stronger relations with COCOBOD in its efforts at ensuring traceability and sustainability.
He acknowledged the concerns raised, saying there is the need for the EU to take steps to ensure that cocoa farmer’s income and livelihoods are improved to correspond with their inputs in cocoa production.
He further lauded the efforts of Ghana and Cote D’Ivoire for their initiative in introducing the LID to mitigate the plight of cocoa farmers.
Mr. Nina also assured the CEO of the Union’s readiness to continuously work closely with collaborators to ensure equitable pricing for cocoa farmers.
“I must say your processes towards ensuring sustainability, traceability and elimination of child labour within the sector are on a good track”, he added.