Ghana’s President, Nana Akufo-Addo has disclosed at a conference at the Federal Assembly of the Swiss Confederation in Bern, Switzerland on the 28th of February that going forward, Ghana will no longer be exporting its raw materials including Cocoa beans to Switzerland.
The foremost person in Ghana disclosed that this is in a bid to reduce Ghana’s dependence on the production and export of raw materials. According to the West African President, there can be no future prosperity for Ghanaians either in the medium, short or long term if they continue to depend on the production and export of raw materials. Instead, Ghana is looking to enhance agricultural productivity by processing more of its cocoa.
President Akufo-Addo, however, encouraged Swiss investors to take advantage of the newly set up AfCFTA, of which the secretariat is domiciled in Ghana in exploring the huge market that the free trade area will avail. He also disclosed plans to continue to put in place infrastructures that will attract foreign investments into Ghana as well as stimulating private sector growth.
Ghana has been the largest exporter of Cocoa beans to Switzerland and is the world’s second-largest exporter of Cocoa after Cote d’Ivoire, its farmers have not, however, benefitted from this status, with the average cocoa farmer earning between 40 – 45 cents per day on an average based on a report by the cocoa initiative in 2017.
Ghana’s president believes that this move among others will move Ghanaians from the position of victims or pawns in the international economic order to a more beneficiary one.