Former Chief Executive Officer of COCOBOD, Joseph Boahen Aidoo, has dismissed claims by former Minister of Food and Agriculture, Bryan Acheampong, that he deserves credit for Ghana’s cocoa self-financing model.

Speaking in an interview on Adom FM’s Dwaso Nsem, Mr. Aidoo stated that the initiative was entirely his creation, describing the vision as coming to him “like a dream.”

He emphasised that Acheampong opposed the policy from the outset.

“I am pained because he opposed the initiative from the very beginning. What people forget is that I have been a Minister before, and as a chief executive you fall under a sector minister. In this case, he wasn’t interested in the initiative and even dismissed it,” Aidoo said.

The former COCOBOD boss explained that he consulted experts, including Prof. Baah Boateng of the University of Ghana, to develop the model.

Despite not being a finance professional, Joseph Aidoo said his idea took shape through rigorous discussions with economists and stakeholders.

“They were surprised that as a geographer I could conceive such a financial model. But the idea came to me like a vision, just like all great models. It was not as simple as people talk about. I presented it to many stakeholders, and they all know the design came from me,” he added.

Aidoo insisted the initiative was carefully crafted to stabilise the cedi and reduce Ghana’s dependence on syndicated offshore loans. Ahead of the 2024 elections, he said he actively engaged cocoa farmers, explaining how the model would save the country significant sums of money.

He accused Acheampong of attempting to take credit for a policy he “vehemently opposed” and called on political actors to acknowledge the true origins of the cocoa financing reform.