The Chief Executive Officer of the Ghana Cocoa Board (COCOBOD), Dr Randy Abbey, has painted a grim picture of the institution’s financial health, revealing that he assumed office at a time when the board was facing what he described as its most difficult moment in almost 80 years of operation.

He disclosed that as of the end of 2024, COCOBOD was saddled with a debt stock of GH¢32.9 billion and a negative equity position of about GH¢3.8 billion, indicating that the organisation’s liabilities exceeded its assets.

Dr Abbey said this marked the first time in COCOBOD’s history that it recorded negative equity, in contrast to its financial position in 2016, when the board reported positive equity of roughly GH¢1.8 billion.

Beyond the debt figures, Dr Abbey identified the Cocoa Road contracts as a major source of financial pressure on the institution.

He revealed that COCOBOD has exposure to cocoa road contracts valued at about GH¢26 billion, although only GH¢4.4 billion of that amount currently appears in the board’s debt portfolio, as it relates to certified works awaiting payment.

Dr Abbey noted that the remaining amount represents awarded contracts that are yet to be crystallised into liabilities.

Speaking on Channel One TV on Monday, February 9, Dr Abbey said, “At year-end 2024, when I took over, COCOBOD had a debt of GH¢32.9 billion and a negative equity of about GH¢3.8 billion. This is the first time in the history of the 79-year-old company that liabilities were more than assets.”

He added, “We inherited a cocoa road exposure of GH¢26 billion, but only GH¢4.4 billion formed part of the debt because those were certificates sitting at our cash office.”

Dr Abbey further attributed part of the financial strain to long-standing procurement inefficiencies, particularly the continuous purchase of jute sacks despite large quantities remaining unused.

“COCOBOD kept procuring jute sacks every year without clearing existing stock, yet continued spending about US$48 million,” he said, stressing that the combined effect of legacy debts, uncrystallised road contracts and procurement lapses underscores the depth of the reforms required to stabilise COCOBOD and restore confidence in the cocoa sector.