Shea employers applaud new producer price

By Wisdom JONNY-NUEKPE

The Ghana Shea Employers Association (GSEA) commends government for its decisive policy actions to strengthen and reposition the country’s shea industry.

The association welcomes the introduction of a regulated minimum producer price of GH¢9.01 per kilogram of shea nuts by the Tree Crops Development Authority (TCDA), the planned ban on the export of raw shea nuts by next year, and the upcoming 2nd World Shea Expo scheduled for September 2–4, 2025 in Tamale.

With the afore-mentioned developments, the GSEA applauds government interventions in the shea sector and urges access to inclusive financing to sustain sectoral gains.

According to GSEA, the interventions are timely and strategic, aimed at promoting value addition, protecting the interests of producers and catalysing domestic industrialisation within the sector.

They provide a strong policy foundation for strengthening domestic processing capacity, and positioning Ghana as a global leader in high-value shea exports.

However, the association emphasised that access to affordable and flexible financing remains a persistent bottleneck for enterprises and cooperatives operating across the shea value chain.

“Many local businesses continue to face structural barriers such as high interest rates, collateral demands, limited working capital for procurement and insufficient investment financing for processing equipment, certification and market expansion,” the association noted.

These challenges, according to the association, do not only undermine the viability of promising businesses but also threaten the effective implementation of recent government interventions.

Indeed, without tailored financial support, shea value chain stakeholders have indicated that the sector’s capacity to respond to the minimum pricing regulations, capitalise on export opportunities and meet growing global demand for the commodity will be severely constrained.

GSEA maintains that a deliberate effort to facilitate access to credit through the various Participating Financial Institutions (PFIs), especially for small and medium-sized enterprises and cooperatives, will go a long way to sustain enterprise operations, unlock growth potential and support employment generation, particularly for women and youth across the country.

“It is in this light that GSEA respectfully calls on government and its partners to consider the unique financing needs of actors in the shea sector under the Guarantee Scheme supported by the Development Bank Ghana (DBG).”

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