Chain governance, sector policies and economic sustainability in cocoa: a comparative analysis of Ghana, Côte d’Ivoire, and Ecuador

The task of the paper is to examine modes of economic governance and policy measures that may alter the economic playing field for sustainability and social equality in the cocoa sector. The paper will not define or measure sustainability in cocoa. It has a strong focus on the economic dimensions of the desired transition process towards sustainability, and, in the context of cocoa, emphasises the relevance of predictability and stability in the market for poor cocoa producers. The paper adopts a comparative framework to describe the evolution of public-private interaction in economic governance in the cocoa sector development. The case studies examine the involvement of national governments with managing and governing the economic realities in cocoa in two major West-African producing countries, Ghana and Côte d’Ivoire, and one Latin American country producing a specific quality cocoa, Ecuador. The paper further focuses on the policy instruments used to in the governance system in these countries that are related with the economic sustainability of the sector. First, the paper introduces the issue of public-private interaction in the field of economic governance.