Partners: Beyond Beans
Period: 2025 –
Country of Operation: Côte D’Ivoire
Category: Community Development, Cocoa Sector
Project Snapshot
The Nestlé Income Accelerator Programme (IAP) is an initiative aimed at improving the livelihoods of cocoa-farming families in Côte D’Ivoire while advancing regenerative agriculture practices. In collaboration with Beyond Beans, PDA has been instrumental in forming 87 Village Savings and Loans Association (VSLA) groups. Seven field officers actively facilitate project activities, including financial literacy and gender empowerment training, leveraging the Gender Action Learning Systems (GALS) methodology to ensure inclusivity and impact.
Project Objectives
Main Goal: Improve the livelihoods of cocoa-farming families through income diversification and financial literacy.
Specific Objectives:
Form and support VSLA groups.
Provide GALS training to enhance gender equality and financial inclusion.
Facilitate share-out events and loan disbursement for VSLA members.
Ensure long-term sustainability through community-based monitoring.
PDA’s Task
PDA, in partnership with Beyond Beans, was tasked with the formation of VSLA groups in Côte D’Ivoire, training GALS champions, and ensuring the smooth functioning of savings and loan activities in cocoa-growing communities.
Update
The program was extended to October 2025 to allow:
- All VSLA groups to complete their full 52-week cycle.
- The successful completion of Gender Action Learning System (GALS) training.
By May, some groups had already conducted their first share-out and commenced a second cycle. To date, 87 VSLA groups have been established across three sections:
- BECIDA
- SAFRA
- SCOOPAAB
All the 88 VSLA groups formed under the project successfully named their groups and were trained on VSLA leadership and elected their management committee members. During the training on the groups, leadership and election module, the groups were sensitized on the qualities and responsibilities of the five management committee members (Chairman, record keeper, VSLA Box Keeper, 1st Money counter and 2nd Money counter) who would be responsible for the management of the groups.
This project has ended and conversations are ongoing for renewal.
