WEF_GrowAfrica_AnnualReport2014

2013 in Review 2013 in Review
SPOTLIGHT
World Cocoa Foundation – Improving
livelihoods through mobile technology
Approximately 70% of the world’s cocoa currently
comes from West and Central Africa. In Côte d’Ivoire
alone, more than 1 million people are engaged in
cocoa production. However, with commodity price
fluctuations determining chronic under-investment in
efforts to improve persistently low crop yields, cocoagrowing
communities are exposed to high risks of
income insecurity and poverty.
Yet with more than 85% of Ivorian farmers already
owning or having access to a mobile phone, the use
of mobile technology to provide information capable
of increasing farmer output, incomes and livelihoods
presents a viable and low-cost solution. Indeed,
studies to date on mobile agricultural extension
services have found that demand-driven information,
when complemented by participatory programmes,
creates tangible change for smallholder farmers.
CocoaLink seeks to tap into this opportunity by
providing growers with low-cost mobile services.
Farmers use their phones to access information on
good agricultural and management practices, enabling
them to apply this knowledge in ways that meaningfully
impact on their farming and business practices with
proven results.
Formed through a unique public-private partnership
that includes the World Cocoa Foundation (WCF) and
Orange, CocoaLink Côte d’Ivoire is expected to reach
more than 100,000 of the country’s cocoa farmers. The
initiative draws on WCF’s current programme work,
both with cocoa farming communities, where education
and livelihoods training are being provided, as well as
with institutional and government partners, to enhance
and complement benefits accruing to farmers.
The information – delivered for free to farmers
through voice and SMS/text messages – covers good
farming practices, farm safety, child labour, health,
pest and disease prevention, postharvest handling,
and crop marketing. Data is also collected through
the CocoaLink system for monitoring and evaluation
purposes.
CocoaLink is additionally exploring further services
that support literacy, livelihoods and local capacitybuilding
efforts in Ghana and Côte d’Ivoire. These
include mobile banking, data exchange and collection,
agricultural input messaging, and other premium
enhanced services that contribute to financially
sustaining the programme’s messaging service.
The initiative’s company partners include Archer
Daniels Midland (ADM), Barry Callebaut, Cargill, Nestlé,
Olam, Transmar and The Hershey Company. Other
CocoaLink supporters include Le Conseil du Café-
Cacao (CCC), ANADER, World Education Inc., and the
Grameen Foundation. It is funded by USAID’s Feed the
Future Partnering for Innovation Program.
Further information on the programme can be obtained
at: http://worldcocoafoundation.org/wp-content/
uploads/CocoaLink-Summary.pdf
CONSTRAINTS
As Côte d’Ivoire is a new partner country, Grow Africa has not yet consulted companies on the key constraints they
face in advancing their investments in Ivorian agriculture.
“In our tradition, cocoa farming was only
reserved for men. We fought for our right
to some land and the Nestlé Cocoa Plan
supports us.”
Agathe Vanier, President of COPAZ women’s cooperative.
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Cote d’Ivoire
Cote d’Ivoire
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