President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo
President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo, during a visit to the Cocoa Processing Company (CPC) yesterday, lauded the new management for putting the company back on track despite the huge financial indebtedness it inherited.
He also assured the company of his government’s commitment to addressing the challenges facing them.
President Akufo Addo said his visit to the company was to access the impact of the Covid-19 on their operations.
“As I see it, we are now systematically trying to find a way to come to terms with it and open up our country again. But, in the meantime, a lot has happened and it is important that we draw a balance sheet from what has happened so that we can position ourselves as to what we need to do for the future,” he said.
According to the President, developments in some strategic institutions in the country, like CPC, will be a major indicator as to how the country will make progress in the future after the effects of the Covid-19.
He said, as a result of this, he had visited key institutions like the Bank of Ghana and the Ghana Stock Exchange.
President Akufo-Addo told the company’s management that if the industrialisation agenda being embarked upon by his government is to succeed, “you are really at the centre of it.”
“Cocoa has been the mainstay of our country for over 100 years. It is vey legitimate to say cocoa is Ghana, Ghana is cocoa. It has been the principal source of funds for the development of our country,” he said.
To this end, the President said to have CPC as a company that is adding value to the cocoa industry makes them a very strategic company in Ghana’s economic landscape.
Huge debts
However, President Akufo Addo noted that the company had not been well managed, saying the previous poor management had presented the current leadership with challenges, including huge debts.
“But I am really encouraged by the reports that I have been receiving consistently of the courageous efforts you are making to confront the past and yet build successful future. So, in deciding the companies I think worth visiting in the post-Covid period, you came naturally on the radar as a very significant player,” he said.
President Akufo-Addo said in order to ensure that a lot of Ghanaians consume the country’s cocoa products, the government has taken major steps, including using the School Feeding Programme to make sure the kids understand the health benefits of taking cocoa.
