Cocoa production began in Tanzania in the late 1960s, yet has not been significantly promoted or developed as a cash crop in the past 40 years. TechnoServe, supported by a grant from Irish Aid, is working with farmers to improve post-harvest handling and better position farmer groups as credible sellers.
TechnoServe worked to introduce mobile phone-based solutions to meet demand from farmers, private sector agribusinesses as well as the development community for information and other value added services.
Since 2011, TechnoServe has managed Agro Initiative Zimbabwe, a grant facility funded by the Department for International Development, which operates as a business competition to support sustainable innovative ideas in agriculture through monetary awards and technical assistance.
TechnoServe helped farmers in marginalized areas of northern Ghana to earn more for their crops while ensuring a better food supply for the region.
Ghana is one of the world's top producers of cocoa, a highly-demanded export crop grown by an estimated 700,000 farmers.
TechnoServe was an implementing partner in the African Cashew Initiative, which worked to improve the volume and value of cashews produced and processed in Africa.
Aiming to increase smallholder farmers’ access to sustainable markets in Ethiopia, TechnoServe implemented the World Food Program’s Purchase for Progress (WFP-P4P) project by providing support to 16 farmer-owned cooperative unions.
With funding from Mother Parkers Tea & Coffee, TechnoServe is developing and implementing coffee waste water solutions in the Sidama region of Ethiopia, to reduce river water contamination.
The Coop Academy is helping to create a professional and sustainable cocoa industry that benefits producers, their communities and the Ivorian economy.
In parallel to the Cocoa Livelihoods Program (CLP), TechnoServe was a key implementer in the African Cocoa Initiative (ACI), which sought to institutionalize effective public and private sector models for sustainable productivity growth and improve food security on cocoa farms in West and Central Africa.
