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News Success Story

OLD FOLKS COCOA FARMERS LIFTED FIRST HARVEST (COCOA BEANS) TO BETTER MARKET

VADEMCO rehabilitated old cocoa farms early this year (2020) own by Old folks in Bong and Lofa counties after the farms were unproductive for 10-15 years. The Old Folks’ lifted their first cocoa harvest for the market on October 2, 2020. VADEMCO links Old folks cocoa beans commodity to better local cocoa exporting market.

VADEMCO rehabilitated old cocoa farms early this year (2020) own by Old folks in Bong and Lofa counties after the farms were unproductive for 10-15 years. The Old Folks’ lifted their first cocoa harvest for the market on October 2, 2020. VADEMCO links Old folks cocoa beans commodity to better local cocoa exporting market.

VADEMCO serves as an aggregator of the Old folks’ commodity. As a result, VADEMCO obtained a legal status from the Liberia Agriculture Commodity Regulatory Authority (LACRA); the government of Liberia regulatory body for exporting commodities. The license was given to mainly serve these Old folks who have been exploited over the years by illegal and non-trained cocoa buyers in the cocoa producing communities in Liberia.

A proud cocoa farmer with his solar dryer

VADEMCO provides other farm management services, and post-harvest services including harvesting, hauling harvested pods to the center fermentation station, breaking pods, fermenting, drying (Solar Dryer), and paying better farm-gate price to the Old folks.  This program, which is co-financed by Solidaridad West Africa, Liberia, and funded by the European Union has brought not only smiles to the Old folks but help meet their basic needs such as food, medication and assist paying their grandchildren school fees, etc. It has brought dignity and respect to the Old folks in their communities.

Over the years, these Old folks cocoa farmers have been exploited by non-trained and illegal cocoa buyers in the cocoa producing communities in Liberia, and not only exploiting these farmers, but tarnishing the Liberian cocoa quality (no fermentation, not properly drying, etc) in the markets when the government of Liberia and its development partners have been striving to improve the cocoa sector to enhance  the Liberia  cocoa quality  for the world markets. In order to achieve this national objective of producing Liberia’s quality cocoa, it is prudent that LACRA weeds out these non-trained and illegal cocoa buyers from the cocoa producing communities in Liberia.

Cocoa beans stacked in a warehouse

VADEMCO is willing to collaborate and partnership with LACRA to weed out these illegal and non-trained cocoa buyers and help provide training for them who wants to make cocoa buying as a business.

We STRIVE and VOW to improve Liberian cocoa quality and reputation for the world markets.

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News Vacancy

Jobs’ Vacancies for Agriculture Technician/Agronomy

VADEMCO is accepting applications for the below positions

I. Agriculture Technician/Agronomy (Tree Crops) (4)

Qualifications:

  • Bachelor Degree in Agriculture/Agronomy
  • 3 – 4 years of field experience with reputable institution working with tree crops/horticulture smallholder farmers
  • Farmer Field School (FFs) experience in tree crop (cocoa) with proving records
  • Ability to work under pressure

II. Lowland Development Engineer/Technicians (3)

Qualifications

  • AA/Bachelor Degree in general agriculture
  • 2 – 3 years’ experience in Lowland (rice) Development Engineer/Technician
  • Farmer Field School (FFs) in Lowland cultivation and post-harvest technology with proving records
  • Ability to work under pressure

III. Horticulture Technician (3)

Qualifications

  • AA/Bachelor Degree in agriculture/agronomy
  • 2 – 3 years practical work experience with special emphasis of commercial production and Value Addition
  • Ability to work under pressure

IV. National Project coordinator

  • Bachelor of science degree in agriculture/Economy
  • 3-5 years of practical experience in senior management position with reputable organizations
  • High level of project management, supervision, proposal and report writing
  • Computer literate with skills in Microsoft words, excel , power point and other soft word is added advance 
  • Eloquent speaking and institutional representation

V. Producer organization formation and Management Specialists (3)

Qualifications:

  • Bachelor degree in Agriculture/Economy/Management
  • 3-5 years practical experience in producer organizational formation and management with emphasis in Farming as a business (FaaB).
  • Business Plan writing experience and skills for agriculture enterprises
  • High level skills in writing proposal and reports as well as presentation skills.
  • High level skills in computer science (Microsoft words, excel, power point, etc.)

Women are encouraged to apply and all positions required computer literacy.

Kindly submit your applications to

VADECMO, Inc.

Neezoe Junction, Somalia Drive Monrovia, Liberia

Categories
News Success Story

VADEMCO HELPs OLD-FOLK FARMERS

Cocoa farming is predominately carried out by smallholder farmers not only in Liberia but in most cocoa producing Countries.

In the case of Liberia, 80% of farmers that own larger and producing farms are owned by old aged farmers ranging from 50-75 years. These farmers don’t have the physical and financial ability to sustainably manage their farms and at the results most of their farms have been abandoned. These farmers go into the farms and scout for ripe cocoa pods and take to the community general markets to sell in order to survive for that day.

During VADEMCO farmers’ registration process in 2019, hundreds of old folks raised questions about the possibility of providing assistance to rehabilitate their abandoned cocoa farms. According to many of the old folks, they lack the energy to rehabilitate their farms after losing family members who previously helped them to the deadly Ebola disease.

VADEMCO helping rehabilitate an ‘old folk’ cocoa farm

heir children have either left them to go to urban cities to seek paying jobs or greener pastures, or elsewhere out of their reach. As a result, old folks harvest few pods & wet beans to sell at general local markets in economic turbulent times to solve domestic problems.

The old folk cocoa farmers concern is aligned with the Solidaridad project strategy aimed at engaging youth constructively and helping the elderly to rehabilitate their farms under Solidaridad West Africa-Liberia (SWAL) Cocoa Intensification and Rehabilitation Programme (CORIP) in Liberia.

It is in an effort to promote sustainable cocoa production, productivity, profitability and competitiveness primary by youth and private sector supply actors like VADEMCO in the cocoa sector of Liberia through Centre for Cocoa Development (CCD).  

In February 2020, VADEMCO embarked on the rehabilitation of the old folk farms in Bong and Lofa Counties in Liberia and it was overwhelmed with requests. VADEMCO sees a need to assist these aged community people to increase the production and productivity of their farms to reduce their dependency on already overburdened rural household as a means of improving rural life. 

The activity is also designed to constructively engage community youth by organizing them into volunteer Cocoa Development Brigades (CODEB) whose members are youths with the responsibility of providing labour under the farm Management services (FMS/FAMAS) for the old folks farms.

Rehabilitated ‘old folk’ farm

Currently, resource levels available to VADEMCO as business entity are insignificant in relationship to the needs in the project community.

In 2020 cocoa season, VADEMCO targeted 50 old folk farmers to be rehabilitated and to provide full farm management services to these farms but due to limited resources, only 16 farms were fully rehabilitated.

We are providing other farm management services including harvesting, processing and marketing of the cocoa beans from their farm. Additionally, we have organized, trained and provided Basic AG-input/tools to 10 Cocoa Development Youth Brigades to carry out the farm management services of the old folk farms in their community. 

New solar dryer provided with help from VADEMCO

The Brigades are paid by VADEMCO to provide the farm management services and in return the old folk pay back during their cocoa harvest, for the labour costs only.

VADEMCO also advance cash with zero-interest loans to farmers who have more than 3 acres (1.1 ha) to help assist their household for food during dome period (hunger time — less available food in the rural communities in Liberia- July –August).

This has brought joy and smiles to both old folks and youth in the rural communities where the current VADEMCO activities are ongoing.

In order to motivate both the old folks and the brigades during COVID-19 pandemic, VADEMCO provided stimulus package including hygienic/sanitary materials and food stuff to help enhance their cocoa farming activities.

At the onset of this cocoa season, VADEMCO gave one of the old folk farmers Mr. Moses Barclay, whose 9 acre farm was rehabilitated L$50,000 (US$254) as a stimulus soft loan (zero interest) to assist his family. 

He cried saying

Why are you doing so much for me and my family? Over 20 years we have not realized even L$10,000 per cocoa season. I wonder you will get your money back?

Farmer recieves interest free loan

With tears running down his chin. He concluded by saying VADEMCO where have you been and farmers need such organizations to help develop our fragile cocoa sector.

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Uncategorized

Roméo Dou, the entrepreneur who takes up the challenge of processing agricultural products

Each year agricultural cooperatives in Côte d’Ivoire produce about two million cumulative tonnes of cocoa and mahogany.

Sold raw, these raw materials are an important source of income for producers, but when processed, they could bring in significant added value.

Roméo Dou, microbiologist and worm farmer, understood it. 

After a few years of experience in the food industry, he decided to initiate a new concept in the world of cocoa and cashew processing in Côte d’Ivoire.

At the heart of its strategy, rural producers.

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sales

ESTABLISH YOUR COCOA FARMS WITH VADEMCO

Are you interested in establishing your own cocoa farm?

Your first step is to identify a good source of planting materials.
VADEMCO, Inc. has the answer to this problem.
VADEMCO will not only provide you with good and healthy cocoa seedlings, but we will provide and establish a cocoa seedling nursery right at your proposed farm’s edge.
We take away your transportation burden and shock of your seedlings.
You can save the transport and use it for another purpose.
VADEMCO cares!

There is no better time to establish your cocoa seedling nursery than now.
You can now put in your orders by calling 0776106153.
Time is running; call now so that we can include you on our list.