Ghana’s efforts to retain more value from its cocoa industry will depend on the ability of local processors to secure affordable working capital, modernise factories and access reliable international markets, Cocoa Marketing Company (Ghana) Limited (CMC) Managing Director Wisdom Kofi Dogbey has said.
He said targeted investment in domestic processing, farm rehabilitation, technology and risk management could improve the commercial viability of the cocoa value chain, create jobs and increase the economic benefits Ghana derives from its cocoa production.
Mr Dogbey made the case at the second African Cocoa Finance and Investment Forum (ACFIF), held at 48 Wall Street in New York City, where industry players and investors discussed bankable opportunities across Africa’s cocoa sector.
Speaking on a panel focused on investment opportunities in the value chain, he identified local processing infrastructure, direct production, research and technology adoption as areas requiring capital to improve productivity and expand value addition.
His remarks place the financing needs of local processors at the centre of Ghana’s cocoa industrialisation agenda, particularly as the country seeks to move beyond exporting raw beans and retain a greater share of the revenue generated from cocoa-based products.
For domestic processors, however, expanding production capacity requires more than the availability of factories. Businesses must also secure sufficient funds to purchase cocoa beans, pay operating expenses, maintain equipment and finance inventories before finished or semi-finished products are sold and payment is received.
Mr Dogbey said existing cocoa processing factories could increase capacity utilisation if they received adequate working capital, upgraded equipment and reliable access to international markets.
Improving capacity utilisation could allow processors to spread fixed costs across larger production volumes, potentially strengthening their competitiveness and improving the returns on investments already made in processing infrastructure.
He also advocated financing arrangements that linked investment in processing to confirmed product buyers and structured offtake agreements.
Such arrangements could help reduce market uncertainty for lenders and investors by establishing clearer routes to revenue, while allowing processors to align production and repayment schedules with expected cash flows.
For Ghana, the economic implications extend beyond factory output. Greater domestic processing could support employment in manufacturing, packaging, logistics, quality assurance and distribution, while creating opportunities for local suppliers to participate in the wider cocoa value chain.
The extent of these benefits would depend on whether processors could compete on production costs, product quality, financing conditions and access to markets against established suppliers in international cocoa-processing and chocolate-manufacturing centres.
Mr Dogbey also highlighted opportunities in specialised cocoa-based products, including cocoa butter soap and body pomade developed by the Cocoa Research Institute of Ghana (CRIG).
He identified cocoa pulp beverages as another potential commercial product that could diversify cocoa-related businesses and provide farmers with additional income streams from materials that are often underutilised.
Developing these products commercially could broaden the range of markets served by Ghana’s cocoa industry beyond conventional cocoa beans and intermediate products. However, businesses would need investment in processing technology, product development, quality standards, packaging and distribution to turn such opportunities into sustainable revenue.
Technology was another area identified as important to improving the competitiveness of the sector.
Mr Dogbey said technology providers could support traceability and supply chain efficiency, while banks and financial intermediaries could develop affordable financing and hedging mechanisms suited to the needs of local traders and processors.
Traceability systems could help businesses document the movement of cocoa through the supply chain and respond to market requirements for product origin and production practices. Better financial risk management could also help processors and traders manage exposure to changes in cocoa prices and other operating costs.
He stressed that investment proposals needed to demonstrate commercial viability, supported by capable operators, clearly identified buyers, firm commercial agreements and financing terms that reflected the cash flows of the businesses involved.
The approach signals the importance of moving beyond broad investment pledges towards projects with defined production targets, credible revenue models and a clear ability to repay lenders or deliver returns to investors.
The forum brought together global chocolate manufacturers, international cocoa traders, supply chain representatives from major producing countries and institutional investors from Europe and North America.
Mr Dogbey’s participation comes amid reforms announced in February 2026 aimed at accelerating investment in Ghana’s domestic cocoa processing industry and increasing the value retained within the country.
For the reforms to deliver lasting economic gains, investment will need to address the practical constraints facing processors, particularly access to working capital, reliable cocoa supplies, modern equipment and export markets.
A stronger domestic processing industry could help Ghana capture more manufacturing value from cocoa, but its success will ultimately depend on the ability of local businesses to produce competitively, secure buyers and convert investment into profitable, sustainable operations.
