Ranking Member on Parliament’s Economy and Development Committee, Kojo Oppong Nkrumah, has warned that Ghana’s cocoa farmers could lose the protection of guaranteed producer prices if the proposed Cocoa Board Reforms Bill is passed in its current form.

Speaking on JoyNews’ PM Express on Tuesday, the Ofoase Ayirebi MP said the Minority opposed attempts to fast-track the bill under a certificate of urgency because of its far-reaching impact on the country’s cocoa industry.

He argued that the cocoa sector is too important for Parliament to rush major reforms without broad consultation with farmers and other stakeholders.

“The cocoa industry is such a big industry here in Ghana. Look at the last time they took a decision at Cabinet to cut cocoa prices by about 30%. It’s impacted a lot of cocoa-growing areas across the country. You don’t take major decisions like this in a rush,” he said.

Mr Oppong Nkrumah said the Minority had asked Parliament to allow more time for engagement before considering the legislation.

According to him, the pricing formula proposed in the bill would work against the interests of cocoa farmers.

“They want to say that they are going to pay 70 per cent. Well, initially they said FOB prices. Now they are coming up with some other mechanism for it. It will put a lot of our cocoa farmers at a disadvantage because what it will do is that it will not be able to do what we have done from times past, provide what we call the minimum guarantee farm gate price,” he stated.

He explained that the guaranteed farm gate price has given cocoa farmers confidence to invest in production because they know in advance the minimum price they will receive during the season.

Mr Oppong Nkrumah warned that replacing that system with a fluctuating pricing model would create uncertainty in the sector.

“It’s what now encourages people to go into cocoa farming for the year because they know that for this year this is the price that is being guaranteed and it’s going to be undulating, which we think is not helpful for the peculiar type of industry that we have,” he said.

He insisted the bill should not be rushed through Parliament and called for direct consultations with cocoa farmers before any final decision is taken.

“So we’ve asked that they don’t rush it through. Let’s have an opportunity to engage. Let’s bring cocoa farmers in. Let’s hear from them. Let’s have their input into the law that you want us to pass,” he said.

Mr Oppong Nkrumah stressed that discussions on the bill were still ongoing and indicated that the Minority would continue to push for changes before Parliament reaches a final decision.

“So again, on that one, it’s not a done deal yet. We will be making a lot more submissions on it,” he added.