The Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of the Ghana Cocoa Board (COCOBOD), Joseph Boahen Aidoo, has stated that his organisation intends to implement a strategy for the 2024/2025 cocoa crop season that does not involve borrowing.
Aidoo explained that this self-financing model is distinct from the traditional syndicated loan system but will be used in conjunction with it.
“It is just a blend. We are blending what we’ve been doing for years. I don’t think there is anything wrong with introducing a new thing. Once you have an existing model, you can only combine that model with a new one, and I believe that if it works, then Ghana will work with that model going forward.
“We have already tried it during the last crop season, from June up to the end of August. That was the model we were using to buy cocoa and ship, and it has worked, but we want to scale it. So even as we may be going for a loan, because when you talk about syndication, it is like going to borrow, and what we are doing will not require borrowing. So, if we are blending not borrowing with borrowing, I don’t think it should become an issue,” he was quoted by citinewsroom.com.
Joseph Boahen Aidoo emphasised that COCOBOD wants to test this model to determine its effectiveness in the short to medium term.
“We want to implement the not-borrowing model, thus the self-financing. That is what we are starting the season with, and once it works, there will be no need for us to go for borrowing,” he stated.
ghanaweb.com