The Société de coopération pour le développement international (SOCODEVI) based in Quebec City, Canada, wants to contribute to the achievement of the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) in Ivory Coast. The non-governmental organization (NGO) recently donated a nursery of 50,000 tree seedlings to the Farmers Hope (Faho) agricultural cooperative in Abengourou, a town located 248 kilometers from the capital Yamoussoukro.
According to Socodevi’s Country Director, this initiative is part of the Program for the Development of Inclusive and Sustainable Model Cooperatives (PROCED), which aims to strengthen climate resilience, “particularly in cocoa production areas. The Proced is financed to the tune of 7.4 million Canadian dollars (about 3.3 billion CFA francs) by Global Affairs Canada between 2018 and 2023,” explains Alexandre Robitaille-Lachance.
The tree seedlings will allow for eco-responsible cocoa production as well as the creation of income-generating activities for local populations affected by the drought, particularly in the locality of Djangobo. In addition, Socodevi will provide technical support to the Faho cooperative for the training of rural women in agro-ecology and green entrepreneurship, with the aim of accelerating the implementation of MDG5, which focuses on gender equality.
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With a production of 1.4 million tons in 2022, Ivory Coast will maintain its position as the world’s leading cocoa producer. However, this sector is the cause of deforestation in this West African country. To remedy this, the Abidjan-based Coffee-Cocoa Council (CCC) announced in 2017 that it would introduce 60 million seedlings of forest species in rural areas by 2024. The initiative is expected to increase Ivorian forest cover to 20% by 2030 compared to 9.2% today according to estimates by the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP).
Benoit-Ivan Wansi