ICCO REPORT 47
Of course, the ICCO may stay based in
London – which is the default position specified by the new ICCA, "unless the Council decides otherwise and even in its current premises, as the lease can be extended when it expires in mid-2012.
Relocation issue
getting in the way The question of relocation is once again starting to absorb too much of the ICCO’s energy at a time when it should be con- centrating on improving the functioning of the world cocoa economy through improv- ing transparency and tackling issues of concern to its members.
Input sought on
sustainability These include developing sustainability throughout the supply chain, dealing with the problem of pesticide residues in cocoa shipments and throwing light on the some- what shady business of cocoa certification. The agency has started work in all these areas, but so much more remains to be done and to make progress it needs to focus on these matters rather than on relo- cation. It also needs a strong input in the way of
ideas and commitment from Côte d’Ivoire, its most important producer member coun- try. However, until a lasting peace is estab- lished there this is most unlikely to be forth- coming. Despite the stand-off between the two
rivals for the presidency, the country was represented at the latest meeting of the ICCO, which – following the lead of the United Nations, the depositary of interna- tional cocoa agreements - recognizes the Ouattara government as the legitimate authority. It sent as its delegate Aly Touré, who has been appointed Côte d’Ivoire’s permanent representative to the ICCO and the International Coffee Organization in succession to St-Cyr Djikalou, who was
also the ICCO producers’ spokesman. This role has now been assigned by the pro- ducer group to Cameroonian Pierre Marie Etoa Abena from the Office National du Cocoa (ONCC) in Doula.
Administrative issues
At the latest meeting, the ICCO dealt with administrative matters, including the draft budget for the 2011/12 cocoa year, under which an increase in expenditure of 2.89 per cent is proposed – below the current annual UK inflation rate and lower than the 3.5 per cent approved for 2010/11. It also revisited the vexed question of the per-
Recent events in Côte d’Ivoire are a
distraction the agency could well do without
ceived lack of transparency in how busi- ness is conducted and regulated on the London terminal market (confidence in which was shaken by a squeeze in mid- 2010) and the controversial issue of cocoa certification (see C&CI, January 2011). Anga confirmed that the secretariat was
working on new terms of reference for a study proposed last year into all aspect of certification (some of which had encoun- tered hostility from some producers) and that these would be presented to members at in September. "Certification is inevitable and producers should use this opportunity [of a study] to gain more information," said the ICCO’s executive director.
Role of futures
market examined Developments on the London futures mar- ket last year certainly worried some ICCO members and the agency’s subsequent study into the background of the squeeze angered NYSE/LIFFE, which runs it.
The ICCO Council in March acknowl-
edged the importance of futures markets as a price-discovery mechanism, but made it clear that several aspects of their operation needs clarifying. It has instructed the secretariat to continue monitoring ter- minal market developments and, in an attempt to gain a better understanding how they function, to organize a seminar in London on June 13-16, which will be attended by representatives from NYSE/LIFFE. Various proposals for cocoa develop-
ment projects were also examined in March, including a scheme to improve the competitiveness of fine/flavour cocoa, while the go-ahead was given for the ICCO to submit to the Common Fund for Commodities for financing a project aimed at furthering sustainable cocoa production in Africa – and thus improving farmers’ incomes. The ICCO is also working on a scheme for the generic promotion of cocoa in China, where there is an enor- mous potential for chocolate confectionery (see C&CI, July 2010, page 46). The ICCO executive committee, mean-
while, reviewed the result of the International Workshop on the Safe Use of Pesticides, which was held in Kuala Lumpur in January, and decided to ask the Council to establish a working group to monitor legislation on food safety. This was something that the workshop agreed was needed. So, despite the distraction of unrest in
Côte d’Ivoire and the issue of relocation, work goes on more or less normally at the ICCO, which in September will start the process of choosing a new permanent executive director. The work done by the cocoa agency is undoubtedly important in understanding the global cocoa economy, but for a guarantee that it will continue over the longer term countries need to get a move on in signing and ratifying the 2010 ICCA. The future of this pact is therefore going to be the focus over the next 18 months. C&CI
May 2011 C&CI
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