Accra, June 12, GNA – The delegation of the European Union to Ghana and the Embassy of the Netherlands to Ghana, in collaboration with the COCOBOD, have hosted in Accra, the third multi-stakeholder roundtable on sustainable cocoa.
The event was on the theme, “Multi-stakeholder Coordination towards a Sustainable Cocoa Sector.”
A statement issued by the EU, copied to the Ghana News Agency, recalled that the first national roundtable discussion was organised on 15 April, on the theme, “Traceability, Transparency and Accountability with regards to Child Labour.”
It said the second roundtable discussion took place on 14 May around the theme of, “Deforestation Traceability in the Cocoa Value Chain.”
It said the third roundtable dialogue focused on the coordination of initiatives supporting the cocoa sector and representatives of stakeholders involved in the cocoa sector – government officials, civil society organisations, private sector representatives and development partners – shared experiences on past coordination efforts and suggested how to move forward.
The statement said they also reflected on best practices and shared lessons on multistakeholder sector coordination and a high-level conference would wrap-up the national dialogue on 30 June 2021 and the outcomes would feed into a broader dialogue between the EU, the Ivory Coast and Ghana.
It said the importance of the cocoa sector for Ghana could hardly be overstated and that the sheer amount and scope of interventions that took place in the sector underlined its importance.
The statement noted that Ghana was the world’s second cocoa producer and the EU was the world’s first importer of cocoa and the third roundtable therefore, discussed how to trigger synergies among the different players supporting the sector to avoid duplication.
It said the panelists of the meeting also reflected on the format and best practices in coordinating multi-stakeholder sector to address sustainable cocoa production in Ghana.
Madam Diana Acconcia, the EU Ambassador to Ghana said: “We have reached a crucial discussion in our dialogue on sustainable cocoa in Ghana.Coordination is key to align the priorities of stakeholders of the sector. We need to find collaborative solutions to the issues faced by the cocoa sector. ”
As a convener, Mr Joseph Boahen Aidoo, the Chief Executive of the COCOCBOD, said: “We are looking forward to working together towards a strong and sustainable cocoa sector in Ghana.”
Mr Ron Strikker, Ambassador of the Netherlands to Ghana said: “Through this series of dialogue, a common understanding of the challenges has emerged. Now, we need to look at a coordinated way to address these challenges. “
GNA