Renaissance for Cameroon’s cocoa cooperatives

The Cargill Coop Academy, an adult education managerial program aimed at cocoa farmer cooperative leaders, has been extended to Cameroon.

The program aims at helping to reduce poverty for vulnerable local communities and professionalize farmer organizations. A four year commitment providing education in partnership with Telcar to almost 900 executives from 227 farmer organizations has been made by IFC, a member of the World Bank and Cargill.

Welcoming the initiative at the inaugural ceremony, H.E. M. Henri Eyebe Ayissi, Cameroon’s Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development said: “Agricultural and cooperative education as much as the improvement of living standards in rural areas are our priorities. With the Cargill Coop Academy, we see an inspirational initiative developed in Cameroon to the benefit of our cocoa farming communities.”

Cooperatives have proven to be one of the most efficient and effective means to reach cocoa farmers, reduce poverty and impact their livelihoods. Decentralized and local, they help famers bring their products to the market. Further developing and professionalizing farmer organizations is a key priority of the Cargill Cocoa Promise.

The Cargill Coop Academy was initiated in 2013, and since then some 320 executives from 80 cooperatives in Côte d’Ivoire have had access to 28 days of intensive classroom training followed by a full year of personalized on-the-ground coaching.

“Empowered farmer organizations play a pivotal role in the development of rural infrastructures and the improvement of living standards of agricultural communities. With our support on the ground, executives are able to make a tangible difference to their business,” says Mehita Sylla, IFC country manager in Cameroon.

More than USD1.1 million has been committed until 2020 by the partners to roll out the program. “There is an opportunity to provide the nascent cooperatives in Cameroon with the appropriate support right from the beginning. Along the performance indicators we defined, we will keep monitoring progress and report back in full transparency to ensure a measurable impact” says Lionel Soulard, Managing director for Cargill’s cocoa and chocolate business in West Africa.

www.cargillcocoachocolate.com