Kuapa Kokoo

One of the distinguishing activities that sets Kuapa Kokoo apart from all other players in the cocoa buying industry in Ghana are the social projects

Kuapa has over the years invested several millions of Ghana Cedis in the communities where the union has local chapters. The nature of the projects are geared towards the benefit of the entire community not just members of Kuapa

The projects are funded out of the farmers Trust which is where Fairtrade premiums and other funds are lodged.

Kuapa Kokoo has a non-discriminatory approach to setting up projects. Eligible societies can apply to the farmers’ trust which is represented by elected farmers who vet and approve projects based on publicised criteria.

Here is how the project funds have been expended over the period.

Health and Safety
Kuapa puts a lot of premium on the physical well-being of its members and there is ample evidence to support this. Several communities have benefited from pump wells. Societies such as Adansi Koforidua who hitherto struggled for portable water can now conveniently pump clean drinking water from their pump wells.

Kuapa organises periodic mobile clinics in its societies. Doctors and medical staff are taken to the doorstep of the farmer for check-ups and training on preventive techniques to avoid diseases.

Kuapa has built (KVIP (Kumasi ventilated improved pit)) styled toilets in communities such as Bipoa, Twifo Wamaso, Abenabena Nyamebekyere to mention but a few providing a decent and convenient way to dispose-off human waste.

Education
Several schools have been built. Bayerebon number 3 has a primary – Junior High School block all constructed by Kuapa Kokoo. The project serves ten (10) other nearby communities. Schools have also been constructed in Amankwatia, Akomadan, Aboabo Camp, Apedwa, Sankore and Sefwi.

Kuapa Kokoo in collaboration with Trading Visions, a United Kingdom (UK) based NGO runs the Fairtrade Education Project in three (3) schools in Ghana and Several others in the UK linking them through the internet for cultural exchange. Activities under this project include Webcasts, Video Conference, Kids Camps, Variety Shows, and Exchange Visits. Under this project several children from cocoa farming villages have visited the United Kingdom with several of their counterparts in the UK reciprocating the gesture.

Economic and Social Empowerment
One objectives of the Union is to improve the living standards of its members. Kuapa Kokoo has invested in corn mills and palm oil extractors, training in soap making, batik etc. for societies to provide alternative means of livelihood during the off-season. Women are at the centre of these programmes since we at Kuapa believe that an empowered woman means an empowered family.

Several of our members feel empowered and they now believe they have a voice in the most important decisions that affect them. Some members have travelled to Europe and the US as ambassadors of this model, speaking on grand platforms on the benefits of belonging to the union. For more on personal stories click here