Entry: Bill Guyton

Today I read the first report issued by the International Cocoa Verification Board (ICVB) which provides an intensive assessment of data collected on labor practices in the cocoa sector, released by the Governments of Cote d’Ivoire and Ghana in June of 2008. This is part of a certification system, established under a "Protocol" agreement with U.S. Senator Tom Harkin and Representative Eliot Engel. The system was put in place to identify and address incidence of the worst forms of child labor and forced adult labor in a country’s cocoa sector.

Certification is no easy task, given that there are millions of cocoa farmers in Ghana and Cote d'Ivoire, many of whom live in remote areas of their countries. Information needs to be collected and reported during periods that coincide with cropping cycles. Interviews must be tailored for local communities, who speak many different dialects.

A lot has changed since 2001, when the Protocol was signed. First of all, the Governments of Cote d'Ivoire and Ghana have committed qualified people in their countries to help lead the process. The governments have executed extensive communication campaigns to educate farmers in cocoa growing communities on child labor issues. Similar coordinated programs are underway in many communities as well, supported by chocolate companies and impemented by non-government organizations (NGOs).

The World Cocoa Foundation is playing its part by supporting the Sustainable Tree Crops Program (STCP) which has reached thousands of farmers and their families in West Africa. At STCP farmer field schools, farmers not only learn how to improve their crop production and marketing, but also attend courses on farm safety, HIV/AIDS and prevention, crop diversification, farm management, and child labor prevention. Farmer who graduate from the program report income improvements of up to 50 percent of more, and practice safer farming methods.

I attended several farmer field schools in 2008 and participated in the child labor prevention courses in Ghana and Cote d'Ivoire. Farmers learn about the types of activites that are "acceptable" for their children to help with on farms and others that could be "unsafe or harmful". They also learn the importance of sending children to school. Farmer field schools take a "participatory" approach to instruction, in which trainers work hand-in-hand with farmers to learn about their constraints and how to solve problems.

Another program supported by the World Cocoa Foundation in West Africa is called "ECHOES" which helps provide formal and non-formal education to youth in Ghana and Cote d'Ivoire. This program is co-financed by World Cocoa Foundation and our members, along with the U.S. Agency for International Development. Our NGO partners in the program are Winrock and the International Foundation for Education and Self-Help (IFESH).

In addition to World Cocoa Foundation, there are many others who are working on efforts to help youth in West Africa including the International Cocoa Initiative, Care, UNICEF, Save the Children, ILO/IPEC, and many locally based NGOs in Africa.

For more information on sustainable cocoa efforts in West Africa, Latin America and Southeast Asia, please visit www.worldcocoa.org.