The Ghana Cocoa Board (COCOBOD) has strongly refuted allegations that it was turned down by international banks while seeking a $1.5 billion loan for the 2024/2025 cocoa crop season.
These denials come in response to statements made by Minority Leader Cassiel Ato Forson, that COCOBOD’s loan request failed to gain interest from international banks due to the board’s poor financial condition and the declining state of the cocoa sector under its current management.
In a statement released on Thursday, August 22, COCOBOD rebutted these claims, clarifying that several syndicated banks had indeed submitted term sheets following the board’s Request for Proposals (RFP), thereby dismissing the Minority’s allegations as “false.”
COCOBOD emphasized that ongoing discussions with financial institutions are a routine part of such transactions and that there is no evidence of diminished confidence in the board’s creditworthiness.
“The assertion by the Minority Caucus that international banks rejected COCOBOD’s request and that the board was ‘chased away’ from the market is false. Syndicated banks have submitted term sheets in response to COCOBOD’s earlier RFP for consideration.
“Despite our plans to reduce reliance on syndicated transactions, we still have existing commitments that require fulfilment through this process. Discussions with financial institutions are part of this, and nothing suggests a lack of confidence in COCOBOD’s creditworthiness.”
COCOBOD further criticized the Minority for releasing a press statement filled with “falsehoods, inaccuracies, and misrepresentations” regarding the current state of the cocoa sector and the board’s strategic shift away from external syndicated borrowing.
The board categorically denied the Minority’s claim that its decision to seek domestic funding was a ‘face-saving’ measure to obscure financial difficulties, labelling the assertion as “categorically untrue.”
“The Minority’s assertion that COCOBOD’s decision to source funding domestically is a ‘face-saving’ measure to hide its financial challenges is categorically untrue.”
Source: Adomonline
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