Ghana's Cocoa Industry: The Role of the State

Cocoa is the mainstay of Ghana’s economy. The crop is a major contributor to Ghana’s Gross Domestic Product. Ghana became the world’s leading cocoa producer in the 1910/1911 cocoa season until 1976/1977 when it lost its leadership to Cote d’Ivoire. Ghana now produces 20% of the world cocoa output as the second world cocoa producer and produces the best quality cocoa in the world earning premium on it.The book discusses the important role of the State in transforming Ghana’s cocoa sector. It also highlights the impact of the “meso model” or mid-way approach in economic reforms which Ghana adopted to transform its cocoa sector in general and the practices and opportunities for smallholder cocoa farmers in particular. Additionally, Ghana’s efforts to embrace globalization are examined. The neo-structuralism paradigm out of which an analytical framework was distilled was used to assess the impact of Ghana’s 1993 cocoa sector reforms. In assessing the impact of Ghana’s cocoa sector reforms in 1993, the qualitative methodology was mainly used to collect data, but some quantitative techniques were also used to enhance the collection and analysis of the data. Ghana was adjudged the “Star Pupil” of Africa by the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and the World Bank after implementing bold economic reforms in 1983 and the cocoa sector reforms in 1993. But ironically, Ghana stood up to the IMF and the World Bank by refusing to dismantle its cocoa marketing board (COCOBOD) as it was recommended by the two Bretton Woods institutions under the Washington Consensus model of total liberalization and rather adopted a "meso model" of partial liberalization of the cocoa sector after skilful negotiations. The book makes significant and original contributions to knowledge in the field of economic development in the following areas: Firstly, the output of cocoa farmers in general is a function of not only the price paid to them but also the overall environment created for production. Secondly, the “meso model” Ghana adopted challenges the “One Size Fits All” Washington Consensus development model because it enhanced cocoa farmers’ output and income, and Ghana’s cocoa export and foreign revenue, enabling it to attain economic growth and development. Thirdly, the use of mobile phones by cocoa farmers contributes to the reduction in their transport cost and transforms their mode of operations. Finally, Ghana’s efforts to embrace globalization and to integrate into the global economy have been impressive albeit urban bias. Read more