The Minister for Information Hon. Kojo Oppong Nkrumah, has revealed that government in partnership with cocoa board and stakeholders have aggressively rolled out programms to enhance local production and processing of cocoa beans in the country. According to the Minister, the interventions have yielded significant results with the country closing in on the 50% local processing target.
“The last three years have seen stakeholders become more aggressive in our agenda to increase local processing and consumption. “We have sustainably rolled out programmes to gradually enhance the country’s per capita consumption of cocoa from just half a kilogram (0.5kg) in 2017 to nearly 1.0kg as of now. Our processing feat currently hovers around 43 per cent, following the continued support of the government.”
Oppong Nkrumah made this known in his keynote address at the launch of this year’s National Chocolate Week celebration under the theme “Eat Chocolate, stay healthy, Grow Ghana”. The Minister noted that the core purpose of the celebration was to promote local consumption of chocolate and other cocoa-based products by creating opportunities for cocoa processing and value-addition companies as well as chocolatiers to showcase their products. The Minister said the theme for the celebration, resonated well among the citizenry and had become the unique selling message, driving the collective resolve to make Ghana not only the leading producer of premium quality cocoa but also a global leader in cocoa processing and consumption.
Commending all stakeholders for their contribution in various ways towards the National Cocoa Consumption Campaign, Hon. Oppong Nkrumah advised them not to be complacent with the achievement given the fact that elsewhere in Europe and America, the per capita consumption ranges between 7kg to 11kg.” He further urged the country to focus on processing more cocoa beans locally since he said was a sure way to increase the country’s chances of raking in substantially from the over USD150 billion in revenues accrued from the global chocolate confectionery industry annually.
He assured partners and international stakeholders that programmes and policies within the cocoa sector were such that Ghana’s cocoa production was done in the confines of socially responsible and environmentally acceptable standards. “We have been working to constantly protect the environment, improve afforestation and ensure that all children of school-going age have the opportunity to benefit from quality education.”
According to the information minister, there were new twists to offering the citizenry the opportunity of accessing the full benefits of consuming cocoa and its related products for this year’s celebrations. “The Chocolate City at the Tetteh Quarshie Interchange continues to provide a one-stop shopping centre for all who would need chocolate confectioneries to give to their loved ones within the period of the celebration.
“We have also received assurance from the processors and chocolatiers that they will make chocolate and other cocoa products available in all regions across the country for the benefit of the consuming public.”
The Minister was hopeful that the recent progress would stimulate the habit of consuming cocoa not only within Ghana but also in the African region and beyond.
Mr. Peter Mac Manu, Board Chairman for the Ghana Cocoa Board, encouraged stakeholders to see the success of this year’s National Chocolate Week Celebration as a critical national assignment and urged Ghanaians to actively promote and participate in the various programmes lined up for the celebration.
