Ghana's cocoa export revenue has taken a devastating hit, plummeting by nearly $700 million in the first half of 2024. The ongoing impact of illegal mining (galamsey), smuggling, and crop diseases has severely crippled cocoa production, putting immense pressure on the sector that has long been the backbone of the nation’s economy.
According to the latest Bank of Ghana, July 2024 Summary of Macroeconomic and Financial Data, cocoa export returns dropped sharply from $1.45 billion in the first half of 2023 to just $760 million in the same period this year, marking a staggering 47.7% decline.
Cocoa export revenues have slumped in the post-pandemic period, with half-year inflows revealing a dramatic 134% decline. This downturn has resulted in losses exceeding $1 billion since 2021, underscoring the severe challenges facing Ghana's cocoa industry.
Ghana’s cocoa harvest in the 2023-2024 season, which ended this month, was expected to be 650,000 tons to 700,000 tons versus an initial forecast of 850,000 tons, according to the Ghana Cocoa Board. However, people familiar with the industry say adverse weather, disease, shortage of fertilizer, and galamsey in cocoa-growing areas could lead to projected yields falling below 500,000 tons.
On top of this, rising cases of bean smuggling to neighboring countries for relatively higher prices could lead to the world’s second-largest producer of cocoa losing about 200,000 tons, affecting its ability to obtain needed bean assurances to attract bigger loans from the cocoa syndication programme.
