The Ghana Cocoa Board (COCOBOD) has announced a series of accountability measures aimed at preventing the diversion and smuggling of fertilisers and agro-inputs under its reintroduced Free Fertiliser and Agro-Inputs Distribution Programme.

The measures were outlined during COCOBOD's nationwide farmer sensitisation campaign on the implementation of the programme and broader reforms in Ghana's cocoa sector.

Speaking during the engagements, the National Coordinator of the Cocoa Diseases and Pest Control (CODAPEC) Programme, Seidu Iddrisu Abu, said the intervention will be implemented through 247 decentralised community distribution centres across the country's cocoa-growing areas under the supervision of Community Task Forces.

According to him, the new decentralised model replaces the previous cooperative-based distribution system and incorporates stricter accountability mechanisms to ensure inputs reach their intended beneficiaries.

The measures include communal fertiliser application, the retrieval of empty fertiliser sacks, the publication of beneficiary lists and continuous field monitoring to minimise diversion and eliminate smuggling.

Mr Abu appealed to cocoa farmers to cooperate with District Cocoa Officers, Community Task Forces and extension personnel to ensure the successful implementation of the programme.

He also reminded beneficiaries that all fertilisers and agro-inputs supplied under the initiative are intended solely for use on cocoa farms and must not be diverted, sold or used for any other purpose.

COCOBOD said the reforms form part of efforts to improve transparency, efficiency and accountability in the distribution of farm inputs while supporting increased cocoa productivity across the country.