Ofosu Ampofo chairs reconstituted Ghana Cocoa Board

An 11-member Board of Directors for the Ghana Cocoa Board (COCOBOD) has been inaugurated. The ceremony took place at the Ministry of Finance. There was a strong call to improve the struggling cocoa sector.

Dr. Samuel Ofosu Ampofo chairs the new board. Key members include Finance Minister Dr. Cassiel Ato Forson and Bank of Ghana Governor Dr. Johnson Asiama. Other members are Chief Executive Randy Abbey, Alhaji Alhassan Kobina Ghansah, and Vincent Oppong Asamoah. Deputy Ministers Samson Ahi and John Dumelo also serve on the board.

Energy Minister John Jinapor chaired the inauguration ceremony. He congratulated the new board but expressed concern about COCOBOD's current state. He noted that COCOBOD was once a symbol of Ghana’s economic strength but has declined recently.

Crop production has dropped from 1 million metric tonnes to about 500,000 metric tonnes. Despite this, Mr. Jinapor is confident in the new board's ability to restore COCOBOD’s glory.

Finance Minister Dr. Cassiel Ato Forson thanked everyone for allowing him to serve again on the board. He previously served as Deputy Finance Minister and highlighted a new law requiring both him and the Bank of Ghana Governor to be on the board.

Dr. Forson emphasized cocoa's importance to Ghana’s economy, calling it the “jewel of the economy.” He lamented COCOBOD's mismanagement in recent years and outlined plans for government plantation farms on about 200 hectares of cocoa land.

The goal is to restore production levels back to 1 million metric tonnes. The Finance Minister tasked the board with addressing diseased cocoa farms, especially in the Western Region, which affects productivity.

Newly sworn-in Board Chairman Dr. Samuel Ofosu Ampofo thanked President Akufo-Addo for his confidence in them. He described their appointment as an honor and a call to duty.

Dr. Ofosu Ampofo pledged that they would lead a transformational agenda for COCOBOD. He promised to “reset, retool, and reimagine” COCOBOD as a key institution in Ghana’s economy.

He urged political leaders to engage in farming actively to inspire youth involvement in agriculture.