Much is known of the system of land alienation, the structure of the cocoa labour force and the type of capital employed in Ghana's cocoa production.
2.3.1 Land Resources
The total area suitable for cocoa cultivation as estimated in 1922 was about 20,000 sqiiare miles, or about 12,800,000 acres (Kay, 1972,
4 , 2 2 4 , 2 7 7 acres and r e g i o n a l l y d i s t r i b u t e d as in Table 2 . 3 , below:
TABLE 2 . 3
REGIONAL DISTRIBUTION OF LAND UNDER COCOA, 1964
Region Acres Ashanti 1 , 5 8 0 , 6 3 5 Brong Ahofo 1 , 0 0 3 , 9 9 2 Eastern 5 4 9 , 2 0 1 Central 4 2 4 , 3 3 3 Western 3 1 7 , 6 5 3 Volta 3 4 8 , 4 6 3 TOTAL 4 , 2 2 4 , 2 7 7
Source: Birmingham ( e d . ) , ( 1 9 6 6 ) , Vol. 1 , p . 2 3 7 .
Land Tenure - K i n s h i p , reverence for ancestors and b e l i e f i n the s p i r i t u a l powers of the earth combined to give land tenure in the Akan- dominated cocoa growing area i t s present p e c u l i a r c h a r a c t e r i s t i c s . The earth was regarded as possessing a s p i r i t or power of i t s own which was h e l p f u l i f properly p r o p i t i a t e d and harmful i f neglected. But the
land was a l s o regarded as belonging to the ancestors. It was from the ancestors that the l i v i n g had inherited the right to use the land. I t was also b e l i e v e d that the ancestors kept watch and saw to i t that the
land was used properly (Dodoo, 1 9 7 1 , p . 6 7 ) . Those l i v i n g in the Ghana cocoa b e l t , t h e r e f o r e , are only h o l d i n g tenancies at the w i l l of the dead. Land thus belongs to the family and, as v i l l a g e s come into e x i s t e n c e , the family land belonged to the v i l l a g e or communal land system. Cocoa farmers accordingly have been w e l l known for their reluctance to s e l l l a n d , e s p e c i a l l y to s t r a n g e r s . They would rather
lease for cash payments or otherwise, but not to sell permanently. A very important compromise was developed in an attempt to cater for the demands of tradition and the modern cash economy. This is known as the 'Land Pledging' system. By this system, a cocoa farmer in need of money pledges his land for the required sum; w h i l e , on the other h a n d , a
farmer in need of land finds a counterpart who is prepared to pledge his land to h i m . The farm provides the lender with security for the debt and the usufruct provides the borrower with the means of repayment of the capital and interest on the loan. Pledging a piece of land often involves a written form of agreement mostly drawn up by local letter w r i t e r s . The pledged land reverts automatically back to the pledgee when the debt has been paid up. Polly Hill (1956) has treated
extensively the land alienation system in the Ghana cocoa belt and her study makes interesting reading.
It is worthy to n o t e , however, that although tradition holds strong and that pledging is popular, successful bidders have bought
(and are still buying) land in the cocoa region. Their success, however, depends, to some extent, upon whether one is a kinsman or a well known friend of the village. The odds against a virtual stranger in the land market are very great. His only chance lies in the pledging system. However, this tenurial system results in many problems, amongst which
litigation among pledging parties is the most notorious and wasteful of time and cash resources. Table 2.4, below, shows the rising trend in land prices since 1900.
TABLE 2.4
ESTIMATED COST OF LAND FOR COCOA, 1900-19 70
Period Cost of land per acre NC
%
Price Change 1900-1909 Free 1910-1919 Free 1920-1929 2.70 1930-1939 4.20 55.6 1940-1949 6.70 59.5 1950-1959 9.20 37.3 1960-1970 12.20 32.6Source: Ghana Ministry of Agriculture: Annual Report (1970).
2.3.2 Labour
Investigations into the labour force of the cocoa industry so far have concluded that there is a very high degree of imperfection in
labour specialisation. As high as 40 per cent of the cocoa fanners studied by Polly Hill (1956), for instance, had jobs besides cocoa cultivation, especially in commerce and other aspects of agriculture. Beckett's (1945) findings were not different from Polly Hill's. The demand and supply of labour were further noted to be seasonal in nature.
The 1960 population census provided the following approximations of labour absorbed by the industry in the year (see Table 2.5). The figure of 522,350 represents about 20 per cent of the total labour force in the country in 1960 (see Table 1.5).
TABLE 2.5
NUMBERS OF PEOPLE ENGAGED IN COCOA GROWING, BY SEX
Region Male Female Total
Ash ant i 112,960 44,910 157,870 Brong Ahafu 69,670 22,780 92,450 Eastern 73,960 34,300 108,260 Central Western 81,920 35,760 117,680 Volta 33,710 10,360 44,070 Accra 1,400 220 1,620 Northern 380 20 400 TOTAL 347,000 148,350 522,350
Source: Birmingham (ed.), (1966), Vol. 1, p.238.
The structure of labour on the cocoa farms - Arising from the
detailed research of Polly Hill, a number of different labour categories have been identified in the cocoa industry in Ghana.
Though many cocoa farmers and their families still work on their farms, the employment of hired labour even by the small fanners has become a regular feature of cocoa growing. The Nowell Commission of
1937 reported that multiple and absentee ownership had developed involving the complete use of hired labour, and that very many of the so-called farmers neither grow nor market their cocoa. There are specified terms for different categories of labour depending on their specialisation. Thus, the Abusa labourer is a person who is usually rewarded with a one-third share of the cocoa harvested. He is the most
important landless worker on the cocoa farms, not only because of his relatively higher wage, but in terms of his overall contribution to the industry. The Abusa labourer is usually an enterprising and knowledge- able cocoa cultivator, who often has capital, but has no land of his own. He therefore obtains a lease through the pledging system or from the chief of the village to start a cocoa farm, but he is obliged by tradition to divide the harvest into three and gives one-third each to the chief of the area and the owner of the land, keeping the remainder for himself. Research revealed sufficient evidence that the Ghana
cocoa industry flourished from the excellence of this class of labourer. On the other hand, the Nkotokuano labourer is usually concerned with the establishment of new farms. But he is fully maintained by the
farmer during the period of his employment and receives his cash
remuneration when he leaves, usually after a year, though sometimes after six months.
In addition, there is the Daily labourer. He is paid by the day, but may be employed for a number of days consecutively, especially in
certain times of the year when work on the farm is required, e.g., in the harvesting season.
The Contract labourer is paid a sum of money agreed to in advance for clearing, or weeding, or clearing and planting a certain specified area. He is therefore different from the other categories of
labourers.
There are quite a few barriers to entry into each of these labour categories. These are discussed by Hill. It is particularly
interesting to note that the barriers are such that there can occur an acute shortage of one type of labour alongside a surplus of another type in the same locality. Table 2.6 shows the estimated size of each category of worker on the cocoa farms.
TABLE 2.6
CATEGORIES OF COCOA LABOUR, 1960
Types of Labour Male Female Total
Cocoa farmers 235,280 77,230 312,510
Family labour 26,850 63,990 90,840
Abusa labourers 47,410 2,670 50,080
Nkotokuano and others 64,460 4,460 68,920
TOTAL 374,460 148,350 522,350
Source: Birmingham (ed.), (1966), Vol.1, p.239.
The size of the Abusa and Nkotokuano labour force is certainly underestimated because the estimates were made in March 1960. Those workers who do not come from the cocoa region travel back home during the period of February to August only to return in about July when the demand for labour on the cocoa farms is high. Thus, the enumeration of workers on cocoa farms in March is bound to miss out a large proportion of them.
As in the case of land, labour costs have also been on the rise since 1900 (see Table 2.7, below).
T A B L E 2.7 L A B O U R C O S T S O N C O C O A F A R M S , 1 9 0 0 - 1 9 7 0 P e r i o d Cost of L a b o u r (A D a y L a b o u r e r ) NC P e r c e n t a g e P r i c e C h a n g e 1 9 0 0 - 1 9 0 9 0 . 0 5 1 9 1 0 - 1 9 1 9 0 . 0 7 5 50.0 1 9 2 0 - 1 9 2 9 0 . 1 0 33.3 19 30-19 39 0 . 1 5 50.0 1 9 4 0 - 1 9 4 9 0 . 2 5 6 6 . 7 1 9 5 0 - 1 9 5 9 0 . 3 5 40.0 1 9 6 0 - 1 9 7 0 0 . 4 5 28.6 1 9 0 0 - 1 9 7 0 0 . 4 0 800.0 S o u r c e ; G h a n a M i n i s t r y of A g r i c u l t u r e : A n n u a l R e p o r t ( 1 9 7 0 ) . 2 . 3 . 3 C a p i t a l
C o c o a p r o d u c t i o n in G h a n a s o far h a s b e e n m o r e land and l a b o u r i n t e n s i v e t h a n c a p i t a l i n t e n s i v e . T h u s , i n c r e a s e s in p r o d u c t i o n h a v e d e p e n d e d u p o n i n c r e a s e s in the a m o u n t of land and l a b o u r a v a i l a b l e . B u t the e c o n o m i c i n d i c a t o r s of r i s i n g w a g e s a n d land r e n t , w h i c h a r e a d i r e c t r e s u l t of a p r o g r e s s i v e s c a r c i t y of l a b o u r and l a n d ,
r e s p e c t i v e l y , s e e m to s p e l l out the n e e d to r e v e r s e the c u r r e n t t e c h n i q u e s of p r o d u c t i o n .
So far the c a p i t a l e q u i p m e n t r e q u i r e d b y the c o c o a f a r m e r is r e l a t i v e l y s i m p l e and f e w . It is m a i n l y in the f o r m of cash to h i r e l a b o u r a n d b u y a few s i m p l e i m p l e m e n t s f o r the c l e a r a n c e of the f o r e s t and a l s o n e e d s for the e s t a b l i s h m e n t of a new f a r m . T h e o r d i n a r y c o c o a f a r m i n g f a m i l y , as O l u w a n s a n m i ( 1 9 6 6 , p . 8 3 ) has found in the v e r y
seven hoes twelve machetes four cocoa-knives - nine baskets drying platform - simple mate
farm house for on-farm workers a spraying machine
seeds.
Many of the above items can be, and are, made by local blacksmiths who charge less than foreign manufacturers. Other capital equipment can be borrowed or shared, e.g., the drying platform.
As labour and land become more scarce, it may become more
economical to resort to more mechanical devices for land clearance, weeding, harvesting and drying. Bigger farmers have already begun to
look at this trend with favour. Eventually, more money may also be sunk into rejuvenating previously acquired old farms, by an increased use of fertilisers and sprays to control pests and diseases, which are more prevalent on old farms than new ones.
Thus a situation of a kind of change in technique in favour of a higher capital intensity is fast approaching the Ghana cocoa industry.
CHAPTER 3
REVIEW OF SUPPLY FUNCTION STUDIES FOR GHANA COCOA