Ghana and Ivory Coast, the world’s two largest cocoa producers, have agreed to deepen cooperation in the cocoa sector, promising to harmonise producer pricing policies and strengthen efforts to ensure farmers receive a fairer share of industry revenues.
The commitment was announced in a joint declaration issued after a high-level summit in Abidjan attended by Ghanaian President John Dramani Mahama and Ivorian President Alassane Ouattara.
The two leaders said their countries, which together account for about 60% of global cocoa production, have a shared responsibility to shape the future of the industry amid mounting economic and environmental pressures.
The declaration reaffirmed commitments first outlined in the 2018 Abidjan Declaration, which laid the groundwork for cooperation between the neighbouring West African nations on cocoa marketing and sector reforms.
The presidents highlighted achievements under the partnership, including the establishment of the Côte d’Ivoire-Ghana Cocoa Initiative (CIGCI), the introduction of the Living Income Differential (LID) aimed at boosting farmer earnings, and collaboration on traceability systems and sustainability standards.
They also pointed to joint research efforts to combat Cocoa Swollen Shoot Virus Disease, one of the most serious threats to cocoa production in the region.
Despite those gains, the two countries said the cocoa sector continues to face significant challenges, including volatile global prices, illegal mining activities, climate change, growing use of cocoa substitutes and increasingly stringent international sustainability requirements.
The leaders expressed concern that Africa, which produces roughly 80% of the world’s cocoa, continues to capture only a small fraction of the value generated along the global cocoa-chocolate supply chain.
“Fair remuneration for farmers is a pillar of the sector’s sustainability and a requirement for economic justice and social stability,” the declaration said.
Under the new agreement, Ghana and Ivory Coast will work to harmonise farm-gate pricing policies, align market premiums and coordinate cocoa season calendars to improve producer incomes and strengthen commercial cooperation.
The two countries also pledged to expand cocoa processing capacity, encourage regional trade in cocoa products and promote local consumption to increase value addition within Africa.
They further agreed to intensify scientific cooperation, particularly in tackling cocoa diseases, and to broaden the Côte d’Ivoire-Ghana Cocoa Initiative to include other African cocoa-producing countries.
The move, they said, would help strengthen collective bargaining power on international markets, harmonise sector policies across the continent and improve responses to emerging challenges facing the cocoa economy.
The summit comes as cocoa-producing countries seek greater influence over global pricing and value distribution in an industry long dominated by multinational processors and chocolate manufacturers.
