Where Your Donations Go
Productivity – clippers, boots, hoes, spades, shovels, picks, wheelbarrows, bikes
Yield – sprayers, knapsacks
Health – nose masks, goggles, gloves
Fairness – scales, storage
Quality – accessible water
What Are These Items?
COCOA PRODUCTION NEEDS
Clippers
Essential to all aspects of agriculture. Every cocoa farmer needs three on average, one for him and two for assistants. Clippers are used to trim and prune cocoa trees in order to inhibit the growth of fungi that cause black pod.
Boots
Essential to preventing ant and snake bites as well as tissue damage caused by walking barefoot.
Sprayer
Essential for reducing insect populations (mirids) and fungal attack. They are used to spray an organic neem solution on the foliage in order to discourage mirids that cause spoilage. Neem is a natural tree product used extensively in India (and in Ayurvedic toothpaste) and also acts as a natural fungicide. Neem is a replacement for petrochemicals.
Moisture Meters
These instruments measure moisture in cocoa beans and make it possible for farmers to monitor their beans, dry, and store them so they can hold out for a better price from a buyer.
Scales
Every village needs a scale in order to minimize cheating by the middlemen. We will be purchasing the scales made by an Ivorian company in Daloa, one of the regions in which many of the 21 villages are located.
Cocoa Storage Bags
Without bags farmers aren’t able to store cocoa beans for any length of time. With storage bags the farmers can hold out for a better price rather than being forced into selling the beans right away because otherwise they will spoil.
Cargo Load-Carrying Bikes
Without a proper bike, villagers end up either pulling a cart to market bearing their cocoa (or other produce harvested for supplemental income) or in the case of women carrying what they can on their heads. Access to a bike also makes it possible for sick villagers to more easily reach health clinics which are often located miles away from their homes.
VILLAGE NEEDS
Wells
Water-borne illness is frequent and debilitating. Most farmers have no access to clinics, so they rely on native remedies. While effective, there is no better solution than prevention! Access to clean water is key to preventing infantile diarrhea.
Public Toilets
A point of pride for villages, as right now there is a public toilet for visitors and farmers don’t have them in their homes.
Lighting and Cell Chargers for Village Ramada (Meeting Place)
Every village has a “ramada” where people gather. Lights would enable adults to have meetings and children to study after the sun goes down.