Stories from ICI
- Gender equality and child well-being in cocoa-growing communities25 April 2022Listening, asking questions, and discussing sensitive topics in a safe environment is what regularly brings together members of the Assemanou community, 37km from Abengourou in Côte d’Ivoire. Over the last year, Nestlé and ICI, supported by the World Cocoa Foundation and USAID’s Women’s Economic Empowerment (WEE) Initiative, have been organizing dialogue sessions for couples to explore topics related to gender equality in Assemanou and other cocoa-growing communities, within the framework of Village Savings and Loan Associations (VSLAs). VSLAs have been used for several years to increase theRead more
- Bridging classes in Guémon: ICI, TRECC and Nestlé support access to education in cocoa-growing communities24 January 2022Tobly Bangolo1 is a cocoa farming community located 15 km from Duékoué. At the start of the 2021-2022 school year, a group of students who had graduated from bridging classes (classes organized toRead more
- Hydroponic farming in Ahondo - Nestlé trains 120 women14 October 2021Encouraging women’s empowerment and diversifying their income-generating activities is the motivation behind this innovative pilot project, set up by ICI and financed by Nestlé. The creation of the project, to promote the hydroponic cultivation of tomatoes, builds on the success and enthusiasm of a number of already existing women’s village savings and loans groups (VSLAs) and brings together 120 women from Ahondo (12km from Taabo) divided into groups of 30 women.Read more
- ICI and the Department of Children take child labour awareness raising to Ghana's Volta region11 October 2021The International Cocoa Initiative (ICI) and the Department of Children (DoC) under the Ministry of Gender, Children and Social Protection, recently undertook awareness-raising on child labour andRead more
- Mars Wrigley and Olam support children in Ousmanekro with new school infrastructure16 September 2021One of the most striking things when we arrive at the Sabarikro Primary School, located in Ousmanekro (Man), is the well-kept feel of the place and the attractive flowers and shrubs planted by theRead more
- John's apprenticeship journey9 July 2021As part of the Child Labour Monitoring and Remediation System (CLMRS) implemented with Tony’s Chocolonely through the ABOCFA cooperative, the International Cocoa Initiative (ICI) supported sixteenRead more
- Canteens for children in Dodokoi and Achoi Biechi to encourage schooling, with the support of the Hershey Company and Barry Callebaut28 April 2021The happiness of the children we met in Dodokoi, in the Akoupé department of Cote d’Ivoire, was immediately evident. Why? They had just received a fully equipped canteen and two toilet blocks with two hand-washing devices at their school, EPP Dodokoi, as part of The Hershey Company’s Cocoa for Good programme with the support of Barry Callebaut, implemented by the International Cocoa Initiative (ICI).Read more