(Ecofin Agency) - It’s done. Cote d’Ivoire’s cocoa output has passed two million tonnes, President Alassane Ouattara announced last Wednesday. By exceeding this volume which the country had been aiming at for years, it further strengthens its position as global number one cocoa producer.

However, the feat is achieved at quite the inopportune time. Indeed, after various actors of the cocoa industry forecast a surplus in global production, the prices of the commodity plunged only to increase again, timidly recently. Now, it is not so sure that the increase will be sustained with Ivory Coast’s actual performances.

According to Reuters which cites the International Cocoa and Coffee Organization (ICCO), there should be a global surplus of 371,000 tonnes of cocoa this year. Regardless, Alassane Ouattara for his part lauds the results of the agricultural sector in his country, and its contribution to the economy. “From 2012 to 2016, we have registered an economic growth of 9% average, driven by agriculture mainly,” the leader said.

Ouattara added that the production of Ghana, world’s second largest cocoa producer, reached a million tonnes. The two countries are actually in talks to harmonize production and commercialization of brown gold and boost the influence in the New-York and London stock exchanges where the commodity is traded. 

Aaron Akinocho