Ivory Coast’s president, Alasaane Ouattara, will increase the official cocoa farmgate price to 1,500 CFA francs, an equivalent of $2.47 per kg from Tuesday, April 2, 2024.

According to sources known to Accra-based media house, Asaase Radio, the increment was informed by a decision taken at a crucial government meeting on Saturday, March 30, 2024.

According to their sources, earlier on Saturday, President Ouattara had agreed to a proposal for an increment between 1,100 and 1,200 CFA per kg before rescinding that decision, and directing that the price should even be higher.

The government and the cocoa regulator the Coffee and Cocoa Council (CCC) could not be reached for comment on Sunday.

Cocoa prices have more than tripled over the last year as disease and adverse weather pushed the global market to a third successive deficit, but the official farmgate price that growers can charge for their beans in Ivory Coast, a top producer, has yet to reflect this.

“There were several proposals on the table and as a last resort, the president wanted the highest possible price for the producers so he decided 1,500 CFA per kg instead of 1,200 CFA, which had been validated previously,” the director of a European export company told Reuters.

“Ultimately in the current context, this is the best possible price that the CCC can pay because the sales system in Ivory Coast is such that it is difficult to change prices during the season,” the person told Asaase Radio.

The director of another international export company told Asaase Radio that: “The president judged the world market situation to be exceptional and wanted an exceptional reaction too.”

EAN/FNOQ

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