The Netherlands is the world’s largest importer of cocoa and a key partner of the Ivorian and Ghanaian cocoa sectors, the world’s two largest bean producers. To strengthen this business relationship, a mission of representatives of the Amsterdam and Zaanstad cocoa industry visited both countries in mid-March (11-15 March) in order, according to the Dutch Embassy in Côte d’Ivoire, « to identify new connections and business opportunities […] and to consolidate the positioning of the Amsterdam/Zaanstad cluster as a full partner of Ivorians and Ghanaians in trade and development ». Among the main topics discussed with the Ivorian leaders of the Cocoa Coffee Council, the local processing of cocoa beans to the finished product. This ambition has been cultivated for many years by the Ivorian authorities and is now boosted by the country’s favourable economic situation. « Since the end of the post-election crisis, Côte d’Ivoire has seen growth of between 7 and 8%. We have controlled inflation and a budget deficit that varies between 3% and 4%, » said the Ivorian Secretary of State for the Budget, Moussa Sanogo. The Dutch delegation also visited several agricultural cooperatives in the country and the port of San Pedro, the world’s leading cocoa export port.