Regional Cocoa Initiative

Launched in 2008 at the initiative of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Development Co-operation of Belgium, in collaboration with several development co-operations agencies, the SWAC secretariat is co-ordinating collaborative work on “child labour in the West African cocoa sector”. Bringing together key stakeholders (West African governments, interested OECD countries, private sector representatives, West African producer associations, NGOs, etc.) and regional institutions, this initative aims to build upon existing experiences and best practices and promote a complementary regional approach on combating the worst forms of child labour.

Background | Regional approach | Objectives | Stakeholders 

Outcomes | Next steps | Documents | Contacts

West Africa accounts for more than 70% of world cocoa production (Côte d’Ivoire 38%, Ghana 21%, Cameroon 5% and Nigeria 5%). Côte d’Ivoire and Ghana are the world’s two largest producers, representing 80% of total West African production. Cocoa is also produced in Togo, Sierra Leone and Liberia albeit in much smaller quantities. > learn more

Background

The problem of child labour in West Africa is a complex and widespread issue and has to be viewed within the general context of the future of youth, poverty and economic development. The phenomenon is witnessed in many agricultural activities such as pineapple, banana and cotton farming, and does not only concern the cocoa sector.

Over the last 10 years this issue has generated strong mobilisation; programmes and initiatives carried out have obtained considerable results. In particular, the governments of Côte d’Ivoire and Ghana, West Africa's main cocoa producing countries, are strongly involved. This initiative carried out within the framework of the SWAC Secretariat aims to build upon these existing experiences and promote a complementary regional child labour approach.

Regional approach

The regional dimensions and cross-border features of the West African cocoa sector and child labour, in particular child trafficking, are a key element in favour of promoting a complementary regional approach in combating the worst forms of child labour on West African cocoa farms.

The regional dimensions of the cocoa sector are geographic: all main cocoa production basins being cross-border – transnational in nature and also economic; accounting for 46% of West Africa’s agricultural exports. These characteristics explain that production methods, social structures and broader socio-economic contexts are similar across countries.

In addition, some of the issues related to child labour have a clear regional context, such as child trafficking. This issue can only effectively be tackled by designing regional strategies.

To effectively address the regional dimensions of combating the worst forms of child labour, regional institutions, in particular ECOWAS (and ECCAS), but also UEMOA and CILSS need to be stronger involved. Regional actors are still absent from most strategies and programmes. The absence of a co-ordinated regional approach is also a handicap to the many efforts at national level aimed at combating child trafficking.

Objectives

• Promoting the emergence of a regional institutional leadership; 
• Promoting commitment to intensify and support remediation efforts;
• Promoting coordination and inclusiveness of interventions at all levels (local, national, regional and international)

Stakeholders

The involvement of all main stakeholders has been agreed as the core pillar of this initiative. 16 partners, including the International Cocoa Initiative, the European Cocoa Association, the World Cocoa Foundation and many bi-/multilateral and regional partners, participated in the drafting of a joint position paper. The initiative also aims at involving:

• Local actors in developing strategies and promoting programmes and activities;
• National governments (cocoa producers and others), its technical agencies, control and enforcement services (notably as regards child trafficking);
• Regional organisation and associations: CILSS, ECOWAS (the ECOWAS’ Youth and Sports Development Centre), ECCAS, UEMOA and producer organisations;
• International and bi-lateral organisations.

Outcomes

• Regional desk study (French) & Conclusions
• Regional Cocoa Task Force, 1st meeting, OECD, 9 February 2009
• Joint position paper

Next steps

• ECOWAS/SWAC Regional workshop involving key stakeholders, November 2009

   Contacts

   Documents

Cocoa

Since 1960, world cocoa production has increased threefold, from 1.2 to 3.6 million tonnes. This growth was punctuated by several jolts caused by structural adjustment policies, crop infestations, diseases and market speculation, all of which have affected production. Three countries in the inter-tropical zone growing cocoa beans, dominate world production: Côte d’Ivoire (39%), Ghana (21%) and Indonesia (13%).The important West African production basin extends from Guinea to Cameroon where, apart from Benin, all the countries grow cocoa trees.

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