The two main producers in the world give multinationals until November 20 to respect their commitments in favor of cocoaors.
by Yassin Ciyow (Atta-Kassikro, Côte d’Ivoire , special envoy)
In the village of Atta-Kassikro, 120 kilometers north of Abidjan, the Ivorian economic capital, sadness ended up giving way to anger. Saturday, November 12, hundreds of inhabitants of this agricultural town gathered to bury one of their own, Marcelin Gnamien Kouakou, suddenly died a few days earlier after having felt pain in the back. In the absence of means, this callor could not go in time to an Abidjan clinic to be treated.
However, at this time of the year which coincides with the “trade” of cocoa (harvest period), income from the sale of beans generally allow producers to pay for children’s education – the deceased on a leash on a leash on a leash on a leash Six behind him – and to pay any health costs, pending the next harvest.
But since the 1 er October which marked the start of the cocoa marketing campaign, Mr. Kouakou “had not sold a single kilo”, explains, Amer, Kassi Kouamé, The village chief, showing the thousands of brown beans stored in the family courtyard where the funerals take place. “All the cocoa produced by the village is blocked here, buyers tell us that they are waiting for the crisis to be resolved,” he continues, surrounded by dozens of mourning, mourned and angry planters.
For several weeks, sales of “field edge” beans (bought directly from the producer) have experienced a serious stop. In question: the showdown committed between Côte d’Ivoire and Ghana on the one hand, which together ensure 60 % of world production, and buyers of brown gold on the other. In a press release published on November 8, the Café-Cacao Council accuses the chocolate industry of being “responsible for this regrettable situation”.
“reluctance” of multinationals to pay
The Ivorian regulator, supported by its Ghanaian counterpart, the Ghana Cocoa Board, invites multinationals in the sector “to make the arrangements for the effective resumption of purchases in accordance with the commitments made”. To this end, an ultimatum set for November 20 has been launched. At the end of the deadline, if nothing is done, the note specifies that the two regulatory bodies will make “recommendations to their respective governments to take measures up to the suspension of all sustainability programs and to the ‘Prohibition of access to plantations to make predictions of harvests “.
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