Ghana must accelerate efforts to process more of its agricultural commodities locally rather than continue exporting them in raw form if it is to maximise export earnings and create more jobs, according to Absa Bank Ghana.
According to the Head of Agribusiness at Absa Bank, William Nettey, significant value is lost when commodities such as cocoa and cashew are exported without processing, depriving the country of higher revenues and employment opportunities.
Speaking on the on-air series of the 2026 Citi Business Festival with Nii Larte Lartey, Mr. Nettey argued that agro-processing remains one of the most effective ways to increase value addition and strengthen Ghana’s agricultural sector.
“We all know that Ghana is second when it comes to cocoa export, but we can’t continue exporting the cocoa in the raw form,” he stated.
According to him, although Ghana has made some progress in processing cocoa into semi-finished products, more investment is needed across the value chain to maximise returns from the crop.
Mr. Nettey made a similar case for the cashew industry, noting that the value of processed cashew products far exceeds that of raw exports.
“If you export a raw cashew and you process a cashew and you sell it, the difference is significant,” he said.
“It’s like three times what you get from the processed, even a semi-processed, and it can go as far as six times when it’s fully processed.”
He identified cocoa, cashew, shea, yam and fruits as some of the agricultural commodities with strong export potential if supported with increased production and processing capacity.
According to him, Ghana already possesses the natural advantages needed to compete globally.
“We have comparative advantage over so many countries. You have the good weather, you have the water across the country, we should be able to increase productivity in this area,” he stressed.
Mr. Nettey further argued that scaling up agro-processing would not only increase export revenues but also create jobs, strengthen local industries and improve the country’s foreign exchange earnings.
The 2026 Citi Business Festival is powered by 97.3 Citi FM and Channel One TV in partnership with ABSA Bank. It’s proudly sponsored by Absa Bank, MTN, Zonda Tec Ghana Limited and Petra Trust.
