World Bank backs Ivory Coast over cocoa
22 January 1999
World Bank backs Ivory Coast over cocoa
THE World Bank has offered its support to the Ivory Coasts decision to liberalise its coffee and cocoa markets.
The Ivory Coast aims to do this by dissolving Caistab, the state-controlled commodity marketing board.
The country is the worlds leading cocoa producer with a 40% world market share representing 1.1 billion tonnes.
The Ivory Coast government intends to retain a 25% stake in Caistab with reduced powers.
These include harvest forecasting and the supervision of policy but no control over pricing.
No authorisation is needed for exports under the new regulations.
The commodity organisation was notorious, according to a report in the Financial Times
The liberalisation of the coffee market is a prelude to cocoa liberalisation, due in October.
- Financial Times 22/01/99 page 26 (News Digest)