Cocoa has shaped Ghana’s economic story for more than a century. It still brings in close to a fifth of the country’s export earnings and keeps Ghana firmly positioned as the world’s second-largest producer. But that heavy reliance comes at a cost. When cocoa prices crashed between 2016 and 2017, Ghana lost more than a billion dollars in export revenue almost overnight. Today, climate change is disrupting production patterns, while global demand increasingly favours processed cocoa products. Ghana, however, continues to export raw beans, leaving chocolate makers in Europe and North America to pocket most of the value.
This is the vulnerability of concentration. When too much depends on one crop, every shock hits harder.
Other developing countries faced similar challenges and chose a different path. Instead of betting everything on a single commodity, they deliberately built diversified agricultural value chains. Indonesia used agriculture as a launchpad to become the world’s sixth-largest economy. The Netherlands turned limited land and a harsh climate into a global export advantage. Israel made deserts productive through technology and water management. Brazil transformed once-dismissed savanna into one of the world’s most productive farming regions. Their experiences offer practical lessons for how Ghana can move beyond cocoa dependence.
Indonesia: diversification as an economic engine
Indonesia’s rise from a largely agrarian economy to the world’s sixth-largest economy by purchasing power parity shows what strategic agricultural development can achieve. With a GDP of over $1.3 trillion and a population of about 275 million, Indonesia is now Southeast Asia’s economic heavyweight—yet agriculture remains central to jobs and exports.
The key was diversification. Instead of relying on a single crop, Indonesia spread its bets. Rice production was protected to ensure food security, but at the same time the country developed palm oil, rubber, cocoa, coffee, spices and aquaculture into major export sectors. This mix provided a buffer against price swings in any one commodity.
Palm oil best illustrates this approach. Indonesia overtook Malaysia to become the world’s largest producer, supplying roughly 58 per cent of global output. Production now exceeds 47 million tonnes a year, generating around $30 billion in export revenue. Crucially, Indonesia didn’t stop at growing palm oil. It invested heavily in processing—refined oils, oleochemicals and biodiesel—so value was added at home rather than abroad.
Smallholder farmers were not left behind. About 40 per cent of Indonesia’s palm oil comes from small farms of two to five hectares. Government support in the form of seedlings, training and market access helped these farmers plug into export value chains. The result was scale without exclusion.
The same pattern played out in rubber. Indonesia became the world’s second-largest producer, with most output coming from smallholders. Processing moved beyond raw sheets to higher-value products such as latex concentrate and technically specified rubber.
Coffee followed a more targeted strategy. Indonesia produces large volumes of robusta, but it also developed premium arabica coffees—Mandheling, Lintong and Gayo—that are prized by speciality roasters. Instead of competing only on price, the country leaned into quality, origin and processing methods.
Spices were another natural fit. As the modern heir to the Spice Islands, Indonesia dominates global clove production and ranks highly in nutmeg, mace, pepper and cinnamon. Investments in quality control, traceability and certification opened doors to premium markets in Europe and North America.
Aquaculture added yet another layer. Indonesia is now the world’s second-largest aquaculture producer, specialising in shrimp, tilapia, catfish and seaweed. While disease outbreaks posed challenges, sustained research and better farming practices gradually strengthened the sector.
Cocoa tells a more complicated story. Indonesia rapidly expanded cocoa production in the 1980s and became the world’s third-largest producer. But quality problems meant its cocoa sold at a discount compared to Ghana’s. Rather than accept this, the government partnered with multinational chocolate companies to train farmers in fermentation and drying. Quality premiums encouraged better practices, and domestic processing capacity expanded to over 500,000 tonnes a year.
All of this delivered benefits far beyond farming. Export earnings supported industrialisation. Rising rural incomes created markets for manufactured goods. Processing industries absorbed labour and helped shift the economy up the value ladder. Most importantly, diversification meant resilience. When palm oil prices fell, rubber or cocoa filled the gap. When shrimp farming struggled, other sectors kept exports steady.
Indonesia achieved this despite real constraints: scattered islands, infrastructure gaps, bureaucracy and political instability. Its success shows that the barriers facing Ghana are not insurmountable.
The Netherlands: beating nature with technology
The Netherlands offers one of the most striking examples of agricultural success without natural advantage. Despite being smaller than Taiwan and having limited arable land, it is the world’s second-largest agricultural exporter by value. In 2022 alone, Dutch agricultural exports reached about €122 billion.
This didn’t happen by accident. The Netherlands invested heavily in research, building Wageningen University into a global hub for agricultural science. That research translated into practical innovation—precision farming, greenhouse technology, advanced breeding and integrated pest management.
High-tech greenhouses transformed production. More than 10,000 hectares are now under glass, producing vegetables and flowers with remarkable efficiency. Sensors, climate control and LED lighting allow Dutch farmers to achieve some of the highest yields per square metre in the world, using minimal water and chemicals.
Strong cooperatives gave small farmers scale and bargaining power, while diversification ensured stability. Dairy, vegetables, flowers, seeds and livestock all contribute meaningfully to exports, so no single product dominates.
For Ghana, the message is clear: limited land or climate challenges need not be destiny. With the right investments, productivity can rise dramatically.
Israel: turning water scarcity into strength
Israel faced one of agriculture’s toughest constraints—water scarcity. Much of the country is arid, yet it exports over $2 billion worth of agricultural products each year.
The breakthrough was drip irrigation, which delivers water directly to plant roots and slashes waste. Combined with large-scale wastewater recycling—about 90 per cent of wastewater is reused for irrigation—Israel effectively created new water sources.
Research focused on crops suited to heat and drought, leading to improved varieties of tomatoes, peppers and dates. Agriculture itself diversified, and agricultural technology became an export in its own right.
Brazil: rewriting what’s possible
Brazil’s transformation of the Cerrado savanna may be the most dramatic example of all. Once considered useless for farming, the region now produces tens of billions of dollars’ worth of crops each year.
This was driven by decades of research. Scientists tackled acidic soils, nutrient deficiencies and climate constraints through targeted innovation. Today, the Cerrado rivals the world’s most productive farming regions.
Brazil’s exports are deeply diversified—from soybeans and maize to beef, sugar and coffee—ensuring resilience against market swings.
What this means for Ghana
These stories all point to the same lesson: agricultural transformation is built on research, infrastructure, organisation and value addition. Natural advantages help, but policy choices matter more.
Ghana already has promising value chains waiting to be developed. Shea is an obvious example. The country produces about 180,000 tonnes annually but exports mostly raw nuts. Processing those nuts into butter could quadruple their value, especially as global cosmetics brands seek traceable, sustainably sourced inputs.
Cashew tells a similar story. Ghana is a major producer but exports raw nuts for processing elsewhere, losing out on a sixfold increase in value. Strategic investment in large-scale or niche processing could change that.
Horticulture offers year-round potential, especially for off-season exports to Europe. But success will depend on cold-chain infrastructure, food safety systems and farmer organisation.
Indonesia, the Netherlands, Israel and Brazil show that Ghana’s challenges are solvable. The issue is not geography or climate, but commitment. The real question is whether Ghana is ready to make the long-term choices required to turn agriculture from a vulnerability into a foundation for growth. Time, as always, is not standing still.