Gov�t Establishes Security Fund for Cocoa Farmers

Government has finally established a social security fund for coca farmers from the 2009/2010 crop season. To this end, it has set aside GH�21.43 per tone, which amounts to GH�15 million, to help kick start the fund. Currently, Cocobod officials are working out the modalities with Social Security and National Insurance Trust (SSNIT) on how to operate the fund.The fund is initiated to help cater for cocoa farmers within the cocoa farmers within the cocoa growing areas in the country. Government has also directed Cocobod to speed up work on the revision of the Cocoa Sector Development Strategy Document, approved in 1999 and organize a stakeholders� workshop to validate the result by the end of January 2010. The revised strategy documents will default into government�s medium term plan being prepared by the National Development Planning Commission. In a related development, government has approved a new producer price of cocoa for the 2009/2010 season based on the recommendation of the Producer Price Review Committee (PPRC) chaired by Dr Kwabena Duffour, Minister for Finance and Economic Planning (MOFEP). The new producer price is currently pegged at GH�2,208.00 per tone, which represents 71.06% of the net FOB price. This figure translates to GH�130.00 bag of 64 kilogramme gross weight. The new price is 35.29% above the previous price of GH�1,632 per tone, which took effect from last week.