Claims that the Ghana Cocoa Board (COCOBOD) was turned down by foreign banks for a $1.5 billion loan for the 2024–2025 cocoa planting season have been refuted. This comes after Minority Leader Dr. Cassiel Ato Forson said that COCOBOD’s dire financial situation and the industry’s purported downturn under its current leadership were the reasons international banks showed little interest in the loan request. The Minority’s claim was deemed “false” by COCOBOD, which stated in a statement released on Thursday, August 22, that syndicated banks had submitted term sheets in response to its previous Request for Proposals (RFP) for consideration.
“In fact, despite our plans to gradually wean off of syndicated transactions, we still have committed contracts that must be fulfilled through the syndicated process,” the statement stated. Financial institutions have had to talk to us about these transactions, but nothing about this process suggests that they don’t think highly of COCOBOD’s creditworthiness.
In addition, COCOBOD chastised the Minority for releasing a press release that had multiple “falsehoods, inaccuracies and misrepresentations” regarding the cocoa industry’s existing situation and COCOBOD’s resolution to move away from syndicated external borrowing. The board also refuted the Minority’s argument that choosing to obtain funds from domestic sources is a “face-saving” ploy to hide its financial problems, calling the accusation “categorically untrue.”
SOURCE: https://dew360.net
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