The Majority Caucus in Parliament has dismissed appeals for a financial rescue package for cocoa farmers, blaming the turmoil in the sector on what it describes as unsustainable borrowing during the tenure of former President Nana Akufo-Addo.

At a media briefing on Thursday, February 19, 2026, the Chairman of the Finance Committee, Isaac Adongo, said the previous administration left the Ghana Cocoa Board grappling with severe financial strain. He cautioned that resorting to fresh borrowing to finance a bailout could further weaken the industry’s long-term stability.

His remarks come in response to demands by the Minority, who have urged the government to provide emergency support to shield farmers from declining global cocoa prices instead of enforcing a steep 28 per cent reduction in the producer price.

The Minority has proposed immediate liquidity assistance to COCOBOD to ensure prompt payments to nearly one million farmers, arguing that the recent price adjustment — amounting to more than ¢1,000 per bag — would worsen their hardship.

Mr Adongo, who represents Bolgatanga Central, maintained that Ghana’s current debt position limits its ability to access international capital markets for additional financing to underwrite such an intervention.

According to the Majority, the priority should be restoring fiscal prudence and overhauling the cocoa sector’s financial architecture rather than resorting to short-term borrowing. The caucus underscored the importance of structural reforms aimed at strengthening COCOBOD’s balance sheet while protecting farmers’ incomes.

Government, they noted, has already outlined a comprehensive recovery strategy encompassing financial restructuring, debt management, and targeted assistance for farmerssignalling a shift from stopgap measures to a more durable path for sustaining one of Ghana’s most critical agricultural sectors.