Cocobod will this week finalise a $600 million loan to finance new warehouses, rehabilitate plantations and support the processing sector, officials said on Monday, 11 November 2019.
Under the deal, Ghana sought $250 million from development finance institutions led by the African Development Bank (AfDB), while Credit Suisse Group AG was charged with lining up $350 million from commercial lenders Reuters has reported.
“Cocobod has reached financial close. They will be tidying that up tomorrow. All the lawyers are going to be here tomorrow,” AfDB President Akinwumi Adesina told Reuters on the sidelines of the ongoing Africa Investment Forum in Johannesburg, South Africa.
The rehabilitation programme is expected to lead to the replacement of ageing cocoa trees and the destruction of plantations infected with swollen shoot disease.
The construction of new warehouses is also expected to allow the world’s second producer of cocoa to store its cocoa beans longer without deterioration in quality.
Ghana and the world’s leading cocoa producer, Ivory Coast have stepped up cooperation to shift from the norm and determine cocoa prices themselves.
