Finance Minister Dr Cassiel Ato Forson says the Dangote Group is in discussions with Ghana over a proposed arrangement to process 500,000 metric tonnes of cocoa locally, potentially positioning the country as a processing hub.
Dr Forson disclosed this in an interview on Thursday after presenting the 2027 Budget to Parliament, saying the company had approached Ghana with the proposal.
“Dangote has reached out to use Ghana as a hub to process cocoa locally,” he said.
He said negotiations were ongoing, with the terms of the proposed contract still under consideration.
“We are going through the terms, and they want to sign a contract,” he added.
The proposed deal comes as government seeks to raise local cocoa processing from its current levels to 50% of domestic production by 2028 and 100% by 2030.
Dr Forson said Ghana’s cocoa industry must move beyond exporting raw beans and create more value locally by attracting companies to process the commodity within the country.
“We are not saying don’t come and buy our cocoa beans, but if you are a company out there, come and buy our cocoa beans, but add value here in Ghana,” he said.
He said the new Cocoa Board Act before Parliament includes a mandatory local-processing requirement, while a legislative instrument will provide the timetable for achieving the targets.
“The LI that will back it will specify that by 2030, by 2030 move from 50 to 100 per cent,” he said.
Dr Forson also linked the cocoa-processing agenda to a wider plan to modernise agriculture and reduce Ghana’s reliance on imported food.
He said the country spends about US$3.5 billion annually on food imports, despite its capacity to expand local production.
“We spend about 3.5 billion United States dollars yearly to bring foodstuffs into our country. It cannot continue,” he said.
He identified palm oil, sugar, rice and poultry as products Ghana could produce in greater quantities, alongside increased production of maize, soybean and vegetables.
“All we need to do is modernise agriculture,” he added.
