Rebirth of cocoa smuggling in the east on the rise

In Côte d'Ivoire, illegal trafficking in agricultural commodities is a scourge that plagues the performance of the sector. Among the cash crops most affected by the phenomenon is cocoa, the country's main export crop.

Ilegal cocoa trafficking continues to be in full swing. The phenomenon has intensified in particular in recent weeks at the border with Ghana. In detail, the producers sell their beans at a price varying between 850-900 Fcfa per kilogram.

If this level of remuneration remains below the amount set at the start of the campaign (1000 Fcfa / kg) by the authorities, sources familiar with the case stress that it is higher than the amount currently practised by Ivorian operators (750 Fcfa / kg).

“  Since the beginning of March, several people have been doing their part to sell cocoa in Ghana,  ” says Laurent Aka, who owns a plantation in the Abengourou region. If the extent of the smuggling is not known, it represents in all cases, a shortfall for the authorities who had nevertheless called on several occasions to respect the minimum price.

As the main 2020/2021 season draws to a close, the forecast looks favourable for the small milking which will start in April and run until next September.

Above-average abundant rains fell in most of the producing regions like Daloa, Agboville and Divo, according to observers, which bodes well for the quality of the harvest.

For the new campaign, the guaranteed price could be set at 750 Fcfa per kg against 825 Fcfa at the same period a year earlier due to the drop in global demand linked to the coronavirus.