District, cocoa board seal agreement to revive cocoa farming

THE Bogia development authority (DDA) and PNG Cocoa Board have signed a memorandum of agreement to revive cocoa farming in the district. The partnership was set for three years with a budget of K1.2 million. They would put K600,000 each. Bogia MP Robert Naguri revealed this in Port Moresby on Monday. He said Bogia had nine rundown plantations that needed to be revived. “We have only one plantations that we are starting to revive, and we have eight more to go,” he said. “The district has a population of 100,000-plus, almost all households grow cocoa, cocoa is a family business, everyone has a cocoa block.  “The landowners are waiting to work with organisations like the Cocoa Board.”
Cocoa Board chief executive officer Boto Gaupu said the agency wanted to look at the whole business of cocoa.
“It is about developing cocoa, nursery to production and procession and maybe marketing,” he said. “We want to complete the all process, be focused, more coordinated, so we will be working with the DDA and reporting directly to the DDA.”