Calls on government to support coffee production intensified as Coffee Federation highlights advantages

Coffee producers in the country are calling on the government to offer more support to the sector as it has the potency of transforming the local economy since it will generate substantial income to supplement the already existing revenue streams of the country.

The producers have complained that the government has neglected them even though the President, Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo has set a target of realizing US$2 billion by 2030.

Speaking at a press conference in Accra, President of the Coffee Federation of Ghana, Chief Ebo Nsarko, said that the country had experienced a decline in coffee production.

In view of that, they are calling on the government to "ensure that the needed investments are in place to help transform the coffee sector.

"Currently, Ghana's coffee production per hector is estimated at about 1.4 tonnes per hectare, which is far from the target of 4-5 tonnes per hector," he added.

The Coffee Federation of Ghana wants the government to "expedite action on the creation of the division for coffee, to facilitate the engagement of actors in the sector towards its transformation. As the Coffee Federation of Ghana, we will want to work directly with COCOBOD since Coffee was not included in the Tree Crop Authority. We want to see a better relationship and support as being done with cocoa."

While decrying government's neglect of the sector, Chief Ebo Nsarko said, "We’ve heard a lot of rhetoric which never see the day of light but this one, we’re holding the government to it because the farmers, processors, marketers, and exporters are all very anxious. They have been at home, since 2015 we haven’t been able to export.”

The group says that increased investment in the sector could create over 500,000 jobs across the coffee value chain.