Entry: Mike Norton, University of Arkansas

When I got off the plane in Accra in late June, I did not quite know what to expect. Never having been to Africa, I had no clue what my expectations should be. Nonetheless, over the past eight weeks I have been able to experience Ghana and Africa in a way that few twenty-year-olds can attest to. I was able to see some of the more remote villages in Ghana while conducting a farmer impact study with the WCF Cocoa Livelihoods Program’s Monitor and Evaluation Team and see WCF programs “in the bush” by observing a CLP Farmer Business School in Asekyerewa for a week. After entering and analyzing the data from the impact study, I have seen the numbers that represent the successes of the WCF Cocoa Livelihoods Program and know the next few years hold high possibilities for West & Central African cocoa production and cocoa farmers.

I have also been able to head east to the Wli Falls and Mt. Afadjato near the Togo border, and west to Cape Coast and the beaches of Akwidaa not far from Côte d’Ivoire. My internship experience in Ghana is interesting in that it adds two layers of experience, one based on the career and academic skills of the internship useful for future endeavors in sustainability, and another based on open-mindedness and cultural-sensitivity that will be useful in all walks of life. There is no doubt that I will use what I gleaned from the internship in the years ahead and continue to tell and re-tell stories of how I spent a summer in cocoa regions of Africa. It sure beats sitting in a classroom.

Pictured: WCF Cocoa Livelihoods Program Farmer Business School Graduates

Entry: Marisa Yoneyama, World Cocoa Foundation

Over the last five years, the World Cocoa Foundation (WCF) has actively developed and implemented education programs for youth and young adults in Ghana and Côte d’Ivoire through a number of public-private partners. The WCF Empowering Cocoa Households with Opportunities and Education Solutions (ECHOES) Alliance program aims to strengthen cocoa-growing communities by expanding opportunities for youth and young adults through relevant education. Through functional literacy, livelihoods training, life skills training, teacher training, and curriculum development, the WCF ECHOES Alliance is improving access to a quality and relevant education for thousands of children, youth, and young adults living in cocoa-farming communities in West Africa.

In Ghana, WCF implements ECHOES through a public-private partnership with the Ghana Cocoa Board (COCOBOD) and other partners including: U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) Africa Education Initiative, World Cocoa Foundation, Kraft Foods, Norwegian Association of Chocolate Manufacturers, The Hershey Company, Starbucks Coffee Company, Fazer Confectionery Ltd., Olam International Ltd., Hain Celestial Group SunSpire Brand, Mars Inc., Guittard Chocolate Company, Barry Callebaut, and the Jacobs Foundation.

Since 2009, WCF has also partnered with COCOBOD and other public-private partners through the Cocoa Livelihoods Program (CLP) in Ghana. The program is funded by the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation and 14 chocolate industry companies to significantly improve the livelihoods of approximately 200,000 cocoa farmers in Cameroon, Cote d’Ivoire, Ghana, Liberia and Nigeria. CLP trains farmers in better production techniques, quality improvement and business skills; helps to professionalize farmer organizations to better meet member needs; and works to improve farmer access to agricultural inputs and improved-quality seedlings. The program also improves farmer access to market information and opportunities for diversification into alternative food and cash crops to maximize income and security.

Recently, the Central Regional Cocoa Swollen Shoot Virus Unit of COCOBOD embarked on a program to replace diseased and aged cocoa trees with free hybrid seedlings. The referenced article not only indicated that farmers were given training and advice on replacing diseased trees, but also that as children will grow to become future leaders, they are entitled access to education: COCOBOD Replaces Aged Cocoa Trees.

Entry: Marisa Yoneyama, World Cocoa Foundation

The USDA Foreign Agricultural Service (FAS) book club is a group of professionals from FAS who meet monthly to read and discuss a book of particular relevance to their work, often times with book authors or other subject matter experts. This month, the book club will be discussing Chocolate Nations: Living and Dying for Cocoa in West Africa by Orla Ryan. Ms. Ryan is a freelance journalist based in London who previously worked for the BBC. She also worked for Reuters Ghana, where among other topics, she covered the West African cocoa sector.

Bill Guyton, President of the World Cocoa Foundation (WCF) has been invited and will be addressing the FAS book club. WCF has worked closely with USDA on cocoa sustainability issues, especially in partnership with FAS programs. FAS has looked to Bill for insights into sustainable cocoa production and to further communicate the tangible and successful programs that WCF has implemented, and currently manages. FAS has a keen interest in Bill speaking about the partnerships that WCF has created and how WCF is working to improve the livelihoods of cocoa farmers.

To read more about the FAS/WCF-funded Norman E. Borlaug International Agricultural Science and Technology Fellowship Program, Global Cocoa Initiative, and other WCF programs, please click here.

Entry: Marisa Yoneyama, World Cocoa Foundation

The World Cocoa Foundation (WCF) has partnered with Nong Lam University (NLU) in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam, for over 10 years on cocoa sustainability research programs. Our work with NLU is one of our longest ongoing programs. NLU has been instrumental in the development of the cocoa sector in Vietnam. A major focus of their work is research to adapt cocoa production techniques to local growing conditions in different areas of Vietnam. They also provide technical assistance/training to local government officials, NGO staff, and individual farmers. In Vietnam, farmers use cocoa as a way of supplementing and diversifying their income from other crops such as coffee, black pepper, cashew, and fruit.

NLU recently established a new partnership with the Cocoa Association of Asia (CAA). We congratulate NLU and are pleased that they have the opportunity to expand their work in Vietnam.

Seedling Nursery in Vietnam