President John Dramani Mahama revealed the crisis during his State of the Nation Address last week, attributing the losses to poor planning and “rolled-over” agreements from prior crop years that locked sales at below-market rates.

In his speech to Parliament on February 27, Mahama disclosed that COCOBOD’s debts have ballooned to GHC 32.5 billion ($2.1 billion), with GHC 9.7 billion ($630 million) due for repayment by September 2025. The fiscal strain stems from a 2023/2024 season shortfall in which COCOBOD failed to deliver 333,767 metric tons of cocoa already presold at $2,600 per ton. These contracts were extended into the current season, forcing Ghana to honor the outdated pricing even as global cocoa prices skyrocketed to record highs amid supply shortages.

“For every ton of cocoa delivered this year under these rolled-over contracts, COCOBOD and our farmers lose $4,000,” Mahama told lawmakers. So far, 210,000 tons have been supplied under the old terms, resulting in an $840 million loss. Fulfilling the remaining 123,767 tons would drain an additional $495 million, crippling COCOBOD’s ability to fund farmer support programs, infrastructure upgrades, and welfare initiatives critical to sustaining production.