The Member of Parliament for Akim Swedru, Kennedy Osei Nyarko, has criticised provisions in the newly passed Ghana Cocoa Board (COCOBOD) bill, arguing that they unfairly strip cocoa farmers of the right to determine how their land is used.
According to him, the bill prohibits cocoa farmers from converting their farmlands to any purpose other than cocoa cultivation or rehabilitation, with offenders liable to prosecution regardless of whether the land is privately owned, family land or stool land.
In a Facebook post on Sunday, August 2,Osei Nyarko described the provision as an infringement on the rights of landowners.
“If you are a cocoa farmer or anyone who owns a cocoa farm, you should note that per the new COCOBOD Act passed by Parliament about a week ago, you are prohibited from using your farmland for any other purposes except the growing of cocoa or for rehabilitation purposes.
“Per the new Act, it doesn’t matter whether you own the land permanently or it belongs to a family or a stool, you will be prosecuted if you decide to cut down your cocoa farm or plantation for any other purposes,” he said.
He argued that the provision undermines the rights of cocoa farmers, insisting that landowners should be free to decide how to use their property.
“A cocoa farmer or an owner of a cocoa farmland must have the right to decide on what to use the land for at any given time,” he added.
His criticism comes days after Parliament passed the Ghana Cocoa Board Bill, 2026, on Thursday, July 30, to introduce a comprehensive reform of the governance framework for Ghana’s cocoa sector.
The legislation establishes the Ghana Cocoa Board as the statutory body responsible for regulating, overseeing and monitoring activities across the cocoa value chain while introducing a sustainable funding model for the sector.
While government has presented the bill as a major reform aimed at strengthening the cocoa industry and ensuring its long-term sustainability, Kennedy Osei Nyarko contends that the land-use restrictions go too far and undermine the rights of cocoa farmers.
