Women in Cocoa Farming Education Program

In West Africa, cocoa farming is traditionally undertaken by the male head of the household. Yet as AIDS, unrest and urban male migration have changed the demographics of the rural community, women are increasingly running family cocoa farms.
However, few if any farmer support programs focus on the unique needs of cocoa farming women and the challenges they face. “Plugging this gap” can raise farm family incomes in this emerging and important cocoa sector.

Partners:

To support cocoa farming women in West Africa, an extension of the “Farmer Field Schools” program has been launched, tailored to the unique needs of women farmers. Community-level meetings, educational sessions and a “video club” provide advice on child labor, planting, crop management and negotiating the best price for harvested cocoa.
The program was developed based on input from a series of community meetings with women cocoa farmers, assessing their needs and how WCF could best help.
In Ghana 100 women have been trained through four “video clubs” during community meetings geared to their needs and interests.
In Cote d'Ivoire (Ivory Coast), 75 women participated.
One constraint faced by the women farmers is that they do not own some of the equipment needed to carry out the farm practices they learned. The program will help guide the women farmers on how to address this and other issues arising from the schools.

encouraging sustainable, responsible cocoa growing