Clause 81 of Cocoa Board Bill infringes on farmers' property rights - NPP

The New Patriotic Party (NPP) raised concerns on Sunday, August 9, at a press conference, about restrictions on the use of cocoa farmland under the newly passed Ghana Cocoa Board Bill, 2026, arguing that the provisions infringe on the property rights of farmers and landowners. Dr Isaac Yaw Opoku, Chairman of the NPP Policy Committee on Agriculture, stated that Clause 81 of the Bill places excessive restrictions on the ability of landowners to determine how their property should be used. He argued that the provision could expose cocoa farmers to harassment, arbitrary arrests, and extortion if allowed to become law in its current form.

Clause 81 seeks to restrict the conversion or destruction of cocoa farms for purposes other than cocoa cultivation without prior authorization. This provision gives cocoa farms protected status and restricts landowners from converting cocoa plantations to alternative uses without the required approval, even on private, family, or stool lands. Dr Opoku questioned the justification for these restrictions on farmers and landowners who have invested their own resources. He stated, "It is our considered analysis that this provision is unenforceable as drafted and will lend itself to abuse, to arbitrary arrest, to extortion at the farm gate and to the harassment of an already struggling farming population." He also expressed concern that cocoa farmers could face similar treatment to the abuse of Sections 207 and 208 of Ghana's criminal laws.