The Ghana National Cocoa Farmers Association has criticised the consultation process that preceded the passage of the Ghana Cocoa Board Bill, 2026, describing it as inadequate.
Speaking on Joy FM’s Super Morning Show on Thursday, August 27, the Association’s spokesperson, Nana Aduna II, said farmers and other key stakeholders should have been given more time to scrutinise the legislation before it was presented to Parliament.
“The consultation period and the people who were consulted were very poor,” he said.
Nana Aduna II said he was not personally consulted by COCOBOD and only became aware of the bill when it was presented to Parliament under a certificate of urgency.
He acknowledged that some farmer organisations may have been consulted but insisted that the process was not sufficiently broad.
“The consultation has to be a lot more extensive and much longer. I do not think it is right that such an important bill was passed under a certificate of urgency,” he said.
The criticism comes after President John Mahama assented to the bill on Wednesday, August 26, bringing the legislation into force.
Concerns about the consultation process had also been raised by the Ghana Cooperative Cocoa Farmers and Marketing Association, which called for broader engagement before presidential assent.
The parliamentary Minority and the New Patriotic Party similarly argued that the bill was passed too quickly without adequate consultation with farmers, landowners and other stakeholders.
COCOBOD, however, has rejected claims that the legislation was rushed, maintaining that it underwent expert review and parliamentary scrutiny. The Board has since commenced stakeholder engagements on the new law.
