The Ivory Coast in west Africa accounts for nearly 40 per cent of global production of cocoa yet most small farmers in cocoa-growing regions cannot read or write according to Jacobs Foundation.

In January, Jacobs Foundation joined with Barry Callebaut, Blommer, Caboz, Cargill, Cemoi, Hershey, Mars and Mondelez International to improve education for up to 80,000 children.

Fabio Segura from Jacobs Foundation told Confectionery News, “Getting kids into school is not sufficient. We have done evaluations on the ground to see where most students are at the last cycle of primary education and many are not even a little bit better than those who didn’t attend school. What we are focusing on is what happens in those classrooms. Are people really learning?”

The chocolate companies will commit $8.5 million to the Transforming Education in Cocoa Communities (TRECC) program.

Program initiatives include training parents on how to prevent and protect their children from maltreatment; multi-grade teaching programs; and early childhood development.

Fabio said the companies’ investments would be reflected in good agricultural practices training as well as better conditions in communities where cocoa will continue to come from in the future.

“Educated communities may lead to improved local infrastructure and a new generation of business-savvy cocoa farmers,” he said.

TRECC’s goal for the year 2020 is to have 80 per cent of children participating in TRECC to perform at grade level and for at least 50 per cent of industry partners to make effective educational programs part of their sustainability strategies.