Out of the amount, GHS 13 million would be paid as cash payment to deserving farmers while the remaining six million (6 million cedis) would provide inputs like cutlasses, knapsack sprayers, Wellington boots, and farmer education.

A total of 120,000 cocoa farmers across the country are expected to benefit from the package and each famer is expected to receive Gh?14 on each bag of certified cocoa sold to the company during the period as against GhS 12 paid last year.

Premium

The premium payment comes as a result of the certification of cocoa sold by the farmers to the purchasing company of their choice.

The Country Coordinator of Agroecom Ghana Ltd, Mr Muhammadu Muzzammil, eulogized the cocoa farmers for their support to the company in the attainment of more than 100,000 metric tonnes of cocoa during the first half of the cocoa season.

He was speaking at a premium announcement durbar of chiefs and people of Bremang Asikuma in the Asikuma/Odoben/Brakwa district of the Central Region.

The event which had the theme “Achieving the impossible to create prosperity in rural communities through efficiency, innovation and empowerment” brought together cocoa farmers from Achiase, Akim Oda, Agona Swedru, Asamankese, Suhum and Assin Bereku.

General Manager of Agroecom Ghana Ltd, Mr Ebenezer Mensah-Bonsu

Assurance

He assured the farmers of the company’s readiness to complement government efforts at enhancing their operations so that their income and livelihoods would improve.

He reminded the farmers of the need to take their farming business seriously and not see it as means of making a mere living so that they would be able to make more income to improve the lot of their families.

Support

Mr Muzzammil announced that the company had contributed to the improvement of the health of the farmers they work with as it had contributed to the development of two hospitals, established 80 boreholes this year in its operational areas, which bring the total to 280 boreholes it has provided in the country so far.

The Chief Executive Officer of Cocobod, Mr Joseph Boahen Aidoo, in an address read for him by Dr Emmanuel Opoku, lauded Agroecom for its role in the development of the nation’s cocoa sector.

Some of the participating farmers

He called for more collaborative efforts by various stakeholders in the country towards improving performance in the cocoa industry as well as improving the livelihood of the nation’s cocoa farmers.

The CEO said the various interventions such as cocoa pollination, cocoa farm irrigation project and other initiatives are all geared towards improving the nation’s cocoa sector to regain its position as the leader in the production of best quality cocoa in the world.

Achievement

He said for instance that following a successful implementation of the cocoa pollination exercise last year, and the impact it made on the industry, the number of pollinators have been increased from 10,000 to 20,000 this year and promised to increase it to 30,000 next year so that the nation can redouble its efforts in the production of more cocoa.

Collaboration

The General Manager of Agroecom Ghana Ltd, Mr Ebenezer Mensah-Bonsu, commended the government for its role and the effort it is putting in place to boost cocoa production in the country. He said however that there is the need for all stakeholders to contribute their quota towards the development of the cocoa industry as the mainstay of the nation’s economy.

He appealed to the farmers to take keen interest in the various training and education programmes being offered by various actors in the sector to complement government efforts geared towards impacting the cocoa industry positively.