A dispute has broken out in Nigeria over proposed new cocoa regulations that would see the government control all cocoa purchasing in the country.
Governor Ayade has proposed the new law by Executive order to the dismay of many farmers, who prefer to see an open market and cite the unhappiness of farmers in Ghana with their Licenced Buying Companies (LBCs) and COCOBOD.
The President of the Federation of Agriculture Commodity Association Nigeria (FACAN), Victor Iyama, said: “Going the path of disallowing farmers to sell to buyers of their choice is like bringing back the woe of Cocoa Board years of policy suffering of price exploitation, which was the reason former President Ibrahim Babagida abolished the Board for open market economy over 36 years ago.
We are using the occasion to call on the APC chairman to prevail of Governor Ayade to desist from the pursue of this law that is already at the state Assembly receiving attention. We, the body of FACAN and Cocoa Association of Nigeria, CAN, was against the proposed law.
The new law will not in any way benefit farmers but will rather create unemployment to their children who have already engaged at the value chains of cocoa productivity and other agricultural produce as importers and other stakeholders at the value of all these crops will also be rendered jobless.
Dr Victor Iyama, President, FACAN
In his speech, he mentioned Ghanaian cocoa farmers who are “gagged and caged” by the Cocoa Board (COCOBOD) and that Nigeria should not be allowed to follow the same path.
