Difficult Decisions to Receive

One of the responsibilities I carried during our time in W. Africa was reviewing funding proposals for a particular disaster assistance funding program. This "Hunger Program" connected with Church World Service (which also connected with One Great Hour of Sharing). And so, in western Ghana, with machetes in hand and boots on the feet the 6 km (3.7 miles) trek to the Cocoa farm out in the bush begins… The coop's farmers were trying to demonstrate their need for a $1000 grant to buy 35 pairs of rubber boots for women in the co-op.

You see, not infrequently, the women who do most of the physical labor, are found along the path having fallen under their loads or having slipped in the mud because they can’t afford the $30.00 for a pair of rubber boots, and in some cases they may have broken limbs and may have waited a day or more for someone to come. This is the life of a cocoa farmer.

Today, along the way we see signs of illegal timbering and a small (3’ black Cobra).

Neither is a welcome sight. One, however, is more acceptable.

The snake moves quickly away. The trees will take 30-40 years to replace.

And finally, the payoff. A well managed and healthy cocoa farm almost 4 miles into the bush.  It was the only land this co-op, of close to 100 people, could afford.

Most of the initial processing will also be done in the bush.

The pods are split open and the cocoa beans are dug out (much like seeding a pumpkin), wrapped in banana leaves, buried, and left to ferment for several days in the bush. Then they are unwrapped and dried.  When dried they are bagged and carried to town where they may only be sold to the government at prices controlled by the government.

In an attempt to minimize production costs and maximize the minimal profit that may be made, farming cooperatives spring up.

In this case when they heard that a white man was coming who was more interested in learning about their cocoa farms, than their former gold coast setting over 100 people walked and traveled by public transport up to 12 kilometers to see if it was true...

 

Even the Chief showed up...

...and if you're wondering, the request was denied.  This was one of the hardest parts of the job, reporting back to the co-ops (or any applicant) that their request was denied.  No reason was given it was just denied.  This has left a chip on my shoulder for some of these offerings, because as I reviewed (and I always did) the programs that were supported, it always seemed to be the more radical, liberal, "social justice" bent requests that saw the money flow.  And I, and others, were left informing the applicants that folks in the US couldn't afford $1000 to buy 30 pair of rubber boots...