The Cocoa Marketing Company (Ghana) Limited (CMC), a subsidiary of the Ghana Cocoa Board (COCOBOD), launched on August 20, 2026 in Tema, an operational model operating 24 hours a day. Declined in three pillars – “Offload 24”, “Load 24” and “Export 24” – the device extends beyond the usual hours the reception of beans from approved buying companies, the supply of local processing factories, and the preparation of export shipments – inspection, loading, sealing, documentation – now aligned with the actual schedules of ships and port operations.
“The world does not stop at 4 or 5 pm, and neither does Ghana’s cocoa ambition,” justified the CEO of CMC, Wisdom Kofi Dogbey, who points out the delays accumulated at the recovery centers in Tema, Kumasi, and Takoradi when trucks arrive late in the day.
The new system is intended to reduce queues, improve vehicle rotation, and limit demurrage related to the immobilization of ships. It is based on organized work in successive teams, and not on continuous days for each employee, as specified by the leader: “A chain is only as fast as its slowest link.”
The initiative is part of President John Dramani Mahama’s “24-Hour Economy” program and his strategy to accelerate exports. COCOBOD’s CEO, Randy Abbey, sees it as a lever to reduce ship waiting times, increase infrastructure capacity – three teams instead of one – and speed up the issuance of receipts, therefore the payment of LBCs and, ultimately, farmers.
It is worth noting that the deployment will start with high-volume sites in Tema and Takoradi, with a measurement of gains reported against the cost of nighttime operations.
