ORANGE WEEK GOES COCOA: SHOWCASING DECENT JOB OPPORTUNITIES IN THE COCOA VALUE CHAIN
In countries like Ghana, South Africa, Tanzania and many others, the 1st of May is a statutory holiday dubbed “the International Workers Day or Labor Day”. The aim of the International Workers Day is to commemorate the struggles and gains from workers by honoring their efforts and protecting them from exploitation.
An example of such workers are Farmers within the cocoa value chain. An industry which is the backbone of Ghana’s economy is vulnerable to low crop yields due to climate factors, high cost of farming inputs and lower returns on sales. To raise the awareness on the fact that there is more the industry can do with what they have at hand, the Embassy of the Kingdom of the Royal Netherlands in Ghana, as part of its Orange Week Celebrations organized a Cocoa fair with the theme “Orange week goes cocoa”.
The Embassy of the Kingdom of the Royal Netherlands launched its Orange Week Celebration with a Cocoa Food Fair.
The activities tie directly to the theme of this year’s Labor Day, “Social Justice and Decent Jobs Opportunities for all” which will be captured in this article.
Orange Week Goes Cocoa
The Embassy of the Netherlands in Ghana launched the Orange Week Celebrations on the 23rd of April with a Cocoa Food Fair. The fair began with an opening statement from H.E Mr. Jeroen Verheul, the Netherlands Ambassador to Ghana, who explains the purpose behind launching the Orange Week with the Cocoa Food Fair. He states “Cocoa is an important commodity to both Ghana and the Netherlands. The relationship that has existed between the two countries is this: Ghana produces the Cocoa; the Netherlands imports it to produce chocolates and other products that can be derived from Cocoa. The foreign ministry in the Netherlands is currently working on providing a consensus that will improve the income of farmers so they can stay in business. One of the ways we can succeed in this objective to develop strong partnerships and collaboration between the governments and the private owned cocoa businesses. Through this partnership, they can come up with better practices that will help benefit the income of Farmers. We showcase that today through this event and the various activities like the Exhibition Stalls where we get to hear what practices are in place currently to support this objective.”
H.E Mr. Jeroen Verheul is the current Netherlands Ambassador to Ghana.
H.E Mr. Verheul together with Hon. Dr. Bryan Acheampong, who is the appointed minister for Food and Agriculture in Ghana, engaged in a cocoa tree planting exercise to commemorate the century’s partnership between the government of Ghana and the Kingdom of the Royal Netherlands.
H.E Mr. Verheul together with Hon. Dr. Bryan Acheampong engaged in a cocoa tree planting exercise.
The event was also coupled with dialogues, networking opportunities plus a tour around the various Vendor Stalls.
DECENT WORK FOR ALL
I would like to take a cue from the UN SDG 8. Specifically target 8.3 which promotes development-oriented policies that support productive activities, decent job creation, entrepreneurship, creativity and innovation. Having had the opportunity of touring each vendor stalls, I engaged each vendor present with the aims of highlighting the great works of individuals and organizations alike that are fighting for a decent, sustainable and just society.
Since you were not present, I will lead you virtually through all the stalls so you will gain the opportunity to hear from the vendors directly.
Ready!!!! Let us begin.
- Kuapa Kokoo Farmers Union
Kick starting this tour is “Kuapa Kokoo”. The name Kuapa Kokoo is Akan for “Good Cocoa Farmer”. Under the Fair-Trade Foundation here in Ghana, Kuapa Kokoo is a growing co-operative, set up by leading cocoa farmers in Ghana with the aim of organizing farmers to market their own produced cocoa. This organization has over 87,000 members of which 32% are female cocoa farmers.
I hand over to Esther Amuzu to tell you more about the initiatives installed by Kuapa Kokoo to aid farmers.
- Tale Beer
Moving to the next stall, we have Tale Beer. And I quickly hand over to the commercial manager to tell you all the tales.
- Koa Impact
Next to Tale Beer is Koa Impact. In partnership with Cocoa Farmers in the country, Koa produces healthy juice out of the cocoa fruit. The organization’s mission is to generate more income for cocoa farmers, boost economic growth and reduce food waste.
Here is Godfrey to tell you more about the organization’s efforts to achieve their mission.
- Bioko Treats
Bioko is a Ghanaian, Woman Owned business that strives for excellence, quality, ethical labelling and is fully committed to achieving social impact through the production of Chocolate. The organization supports outreach to cocoa farmers by facilitating the acquisition of health insurance and providing the necessary health screening for cocoa farmers in Ghana’s Eastern Region.
Here is the founder, Jeanne Donkoh, to tell you more about Bioko Treats.
CONCLUSION
The cocoa industry is one of many industries that is vulnerable but with efforts like the ones highlighted above, it has the potential to be the backbone it once was. I hope this brief highlight has sparked something in you that will compel you to move towards making an impact in your office space thereby creating a decent, sustainable and just work environment not just for the present but for future generations.
Happy International Labor Day from the entire team at Vice Versa Media Ghana.
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