COCOA360 FUND
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Mission Statement
Our mission is to put cocoa farmers and their families in the driver’s seat to eliminate barriers to education and healthcare access for their pre-school children from within, harvest after harvest. Cocoa farming is a major economic activity in Ghana, with the country being the second-largest producer of cocoa globally. However, despite the crucial role that cocoa farming plays in the country's economy, cocoa farmers face significant challenges that impact their livelihoods and the well-being of their families. One of the major challenges faced by cocoa farmers in Ghana is financial inequality. Many cocoa farmers struggle to make ends meet and are unable to access basic financial opportunities, such as accessing credit, that could help improve their businesses. This financial inequality leads to a range of other issues, including limited access to education, healthcare, and other essential services. In particular, the lack of access to education is a significant problem for cocoa farming communities in Ghana. Many children of cocoa farmers do not attend early childhood education (ECE), and those who do often struggle to keep up with their urban peers. The lack of educational opportunities for children from cocoa farming communities reflects the limited financial opportunities available to families, despite the Ghanaian government's efforts to provide free basic education. These challenges faced by cocoa farming communities in Ghana create a cycle of poverty and limited opportunities that Cocoa360 seeks to address through its "farm-for-impact" model. A brief overview of Cocoa360 and its mission to address these challenges Cocoa360 is a non-profit organization that was established to address the challenges faced by cocoa farming communities in Ghana. The organization is committed to effectively engaging with these communities and redistributing power within the cocoa sector. They have developed the innovative "farm-for-impact" (FFI) model, which involves community members providing labor on community-run cocoa farms in exchange for tuition-free education for their children. Cocoa360 has built an experimental Centre of Excellence that includes an all-girls tuition-free school (Tarkwa Breman Girls’ School) with 300 students, a medical clinic (Tarkwa Breman Community Clinic), and acquired cocoa farms where our 48-member staff works with 8 communities to improve access for students. They have been focused on using the FFI model to improve early childhood education and have achieved attendance rates of 97% (compared to 70% in rural schools across the country). They aim to ensure that all children, regardless of their socio-economic background, have access to quality education and are allowed to reach their full potential.
About This Cause
In 2015, Cocoa360 began with implementation support of $150,000 from the University of Pennsylvania and later research funding of $75,000 from Yale University’s School of Public Health, to pilot the Farm For Impact model to improve early childhood education outcomes. From this 4-year pilot study (2018 - 2022), we established a tuition-free school, the Tarkwa Breman Girls School (TBGS), and a clinic, the Tarkwa Breman Community Clinic (TBCC), situated on 60 acres of cultivated and uncultivated community land in Ghana. This year 2023, we are partnering with the Ghana Education Service and Ministry of Education to transition the “FFI Model towards ECE” innovation in non-Tarkwa Breman Center of Excellence (TBCE) settings. In the next 5 years and beyond, we aim at Scaling our model across all regions in Ghana. We also aim at expanding into other cocoa-growing countries including Ivory Coast, Nigeria, Cameroon, and Siera Leon. From our four-year pilot study, we have demonstrated that it is possible to apply community farm revenues to finance 100% of all preschool educational and healthcare expenses that the government of Ghana does not cover. To operationalize this experiment, we established a tuition-free school, the Tarkwa Breman Girls School (TBGS), and a clinic, the Tarkwa Breman Community Clinic (TBCC), situated on 60 acres of cultivated and uncultivated community land in rural Ghana. By leveraging our pioneering Farm-For-Impact model, we worked with community members to fund 100% of non-tuition expenses related to Early Childhood Education at the Tarkwa Breman Girls' School (TBGS), such as books and uniforms with cocoa farm revenues. Findings from this pilot intervention show that the attendance rate at TBGS is 97% (on average), compared to the national rural attendance rate of 70%. Impact since 2016 Early Childhood Development 90 girls enrolled at the Tarkwa Breman Girls’ School (TBGS) Pre-School. 98% attendance rate versus the Ghanaian government’s sub-70% in rural communities. 5-year reduction in the school-going age 100% vaccination record for students 8 Communities served Post-ECE Education 210 additional girls enrolled at the Tarkwa Breman Girls’ School (TBGS) Primary School. 241 students (boys and girls) Ripple effect of the Farm-for-Impact model in: Healthcare: 35000+ cocoa farmers directly reached 17211 patients served 6106 malaria cases treated 115 babies delivered 1300 hypertension cases addressed 1200 respiratory tract infection cases Agriculture: Reached over 35000 farmers 600 cocoa farmers received enhanced farming practices in 8 communities. 50,000+ cocoa seedlings distributed to farmers as a post-covid-19 shock measure 182% increase in farm size from 2018 to 2022 1425% increase in farm production level per annum. 100+ farmers trained in hand pollination