Village Savings and Loans Associations are community-based savings groups that promote saving and borrowing in communities where access to formal financial services is limited. In cocoa-growing communities, they help strengthen household resilience, promote gender equality and improve child protection.
This practical guide is designed for anyone interested in setting up VSLAs in cocoa-growing communities as a means to support child protection and address child labour. The guide describes the operating principles of VSLAs and outlines how to design and set up a VSLA based on ICI’s experience implementing VSLAs in cocoa-producing communities in Côte d'Ivoire and Ghana. Additionally, the guide offers practical recommendations for addressing common implementation challenges and includes useful resources.
