The Chief Executive Officer of the Ghana Cocoa Board (COCOBOD), Joseph Boahen Aidoo, has urged women cocoa farmers to support the Cocoa Farmers Pension Scheme (CFPS) policy, by voluntarily enrolling to enjoy its numerous benefits.
He said it is necessary for them to contribute to the scheme to secure an enhanced future and a socio-economic well-being.
The CFPS was officially introduced in 2020, with registration of farmers onto the scheme at Assin Fosu in the Assin Central Municipality of the Central Region and New Edubiase, and Adansi South District in the Ashanti Region, with plans to expand it nationwide soon.
Mr. Aidoo gave the advice at the Brong-Ahafo Women Co-operative Farmers and Marketing Central Union (BAWCOF) Limited festival 2023 at the Jubilee Park in Sunyani.
It was on the theme: “Empowering Women in Sustainable Development Goals, Nurturing Women, Nurturing Cocoa, Promoting Sustainability Together,”.
The festival brought together about 7000 members from 96 societies in nine cocoa districts in the Brong-Ahafo Cocoa Region.
The CEO of COCOBOD underscored the benefits of the scheme and expressed worry that unenrolled farmers would miss out on opportunities to guarantee a secured future income.
Mr. Aidoo explained that five per cent of every bean sold by farmers participating in the CFPS would be deducted and transferred into the pension accounts for the Government to also contribute a percentage amount to it.
He clarified that contributors to the scheme could decide to retire and receive full benefits after five years, but younger farmers on it could either opt to retire at the age of 55 or continue to contribute and retire later.
He thus advised the farmers to religiously embrace and implement all the best farming practices such as pruning, hand pollination and spraying introduced by the COCOBOD, saying those practices are part of the government’s initiatives to increase cocoa yields for higher production of the entire cocoa sector.
He stated that by adopting the correct practices, a farmer should be able to reap 20 bags of cocoa beans per acre of land, saying that anything short of that calls for a revision the farmer’s the agronomic practices.
The Brong-Ahafo Cocoa Regional Administrator of the COCOBOD, Michael Asumanu, stressed the significance of advocating for financial empowerment for women in cocoa farming as it enabled them to achieve financial independence even during the off-cocoa season.
He highlighted the COCOBOD’s long-standing commitment to supporting cocoa farmers in Ghana through the implementation of tailor-made programmes aimed to ensure financial freedom.
In a remark, the Paramount Chief of Goaso Traditional Area, Nana Akwasi Bosompra stressed the significance of the dedication of women engaging cocoa farming, stating that the farming is time-demanding and therefore requires constant attention and effort for one to gain the necessary financial returns and other rewards.
The President of Brong-Ahafo Women Co-operative Farmers and Marketing Central Union Martha Addai, reiterated the cooperatives’ staunch commitment to its members’ financial well-being, saying achieving that goal requires the establishment of credit unions to ensure continuous flow of financial support to the members.
The festival brought continuous flow of financial support to the members.
The festival brought together about 7000 members from 96 societies in nine cocoa districts in the Brong-Ahafo Cocoa Region.
SOURCE: GNA
