• Joint five-year plan targets one of cocoa’s most damaging diseases

• Strategy focuses on replanting, surveillance, and resistant varieties

• Disease has already hit large areas and weighed on production

Côte d’Ivoire and Ghana have agreed on a joint five-year strategy to fight cocoa swollen shoot disease, one of the most serious threats to production in West Africa.

The plan, covering 2026–2031, was adopted during a workshop held in Abidjan on April 14–15, organized by the Côte d’Ivoire-Ghana Cocoa Initiative (ICCIG). It brings together the Coffee-Cocoa Council (CCC), Ghana’s Cocobod, and development partners.

The roadmap is built around five priorities: rehabilitating infected plantations, strengthening phytosanitary monitoring, updating maps of affected areas, raising farmer awareness, and developing disease-resistant cocoa varieties through joint research.

Swollen shoot remains one of the most destructive diseases affecting cocoa trees in Africa. The virus, spread by mealybugs, causes swelling of stems, leaf discoloration, and progressive yield losses of 25% to 50%. Infected trees typically die within three to five years. Some trees can also carry the virus without visible symptoms, allowing it to spread unnoticed.

The decision to coordinate efforts reflects the limits of national responses. Authorities stress that the disease has become a regional challenge requiring long-term, collective action to protect the future of cocoa production.

The scale of the problem is already significant. Data from the U.S. Department of Agriculture show that swollen shoot has spread to 11 of Côte d’Ivoire’s 13 main cocoa-producing regions. While the exact area affected is difficult to quantify, the disease is adding pressure to a sector already facing multiple challenges.

According to the USDA, the combination of production constraints and the spread of swollen shoot has increased production costs and weighed on export prices.

In Ghana, the situation is equally concerning. Cocobod estimates that around 500,000 hectares—about 26% of the country’s cocoa area—were affected in 2024. The North-West region, the third-largest contributor to national output, accounted for 66% of infected plantations.

The disease is widely seen as a key factor behind declining cocoa output in both countries, alongside climate pressures and illegal gold mining.

According to the International Cocoa Organization (ICCO), Côte d’Ivoire’s cocoa production fell by 18% between the 2020–2021 and 2024–2025 seasons, from 2.24 million tons to 1.85 million tons. In Ghana, output dropped by 40% over the same period, reaching about 600,000 tons.

Stéphanas Assocle