Accra: The Chief Executive Officer of the Ghana Cocoa Board (COCOBOD), Dr. Randy Abbey, has responded to calls by the Minority Caucus in Parliament for his removal, citing recent reforms in the cocoa sector as the reason for their demand.
According to Ghana Web, According to citinewsroom.com, Dr. Abbey stated that the challenges currently facing the cocoa industry are due to decisions made by the previous administration. The Minority argues that the ongoing reforms, including the reduction of the cocoa producer price, will negatively impact farmers and worsen their conditions. Consequently, they have called for Dr. Abbey's dismissal.
In an interview on Thursday, February 12, 2026, Dr. Abbey explained that the existing funding model for cocoa purchases was not introduced by his administration but inherited from the previous government. 'The model that we are using today is not a model that I created. It is a model that we inherited, which was used in the 2024/2025 season,' he said.
Dr. Abbey clarified that the long-standing syndicated loan model, which had financed cocoa purchases for 32 years, collapsed during the 2023/2024 season under the previous government. Upon taking office, his team assessed the inherited system and found it unsustainable. He noted, 'For the first time in the history of the loan, the first tranche hit the COCOBOD account on December 22. COCOBOD had defaulted on its loans and, under the DDEP, asked for the deferment of the debt and a haircut, among others. That is how the syndicated loan collapsed.'
He emphasized the need for a new approach, stating, 'We came in and we realised that this model was not sustainable. We therefore needed a new model, and that is what we were working towards.'