Improving Opportunities for Arhuaco Indigenous Communities
Background Narrative
The Sierra Nevada de Santa Marta is the world’s highest coastal range. It is located on Colombia’s Caribbean coast. The biodiverse haven is home to Arhuaco indigenous communities, which have inhabited the Sierra for generations. ACDI/VOCA first worked with Arhuaco small-scale cocoa producers to increase yields, improve bean quality, and create sustainable links to the specialty cocoa market, under the Afro-Colombian and Indigenous Program.
These Arhuaco producers secured a transparent and profitable business relationship with Cacao Hunters, a specialty chocolate producer. Cacao Hunters committed to buying all the cocoa beans that the Arhuaco produced and it guaranteed a premium price that was significantly higher than the standard cocoa market’s. Under the Improvement of the Cacao Value Chain in the Sierra Nevada de Santa Marta project, ACDI/VOCA continued to support indigenous families as they recovered from the impact of armed conflict. The project helped Arhuaco farmers improve the quality of porcelain cocoa beans, which contain valuable genetic material and are difficult to find, as well as strengthen their processing and commercialization.
Objectives
- Expanded support for the improvement of porcelain cocoa and the recovery of 148 families.
Project Activities & Approaches
- Strengthened organizational capacity to improve producers’ access to markets
- Increased productivity per hectare of land and improved the quality of cocoa through good agricultural practices in processing and drying
- Provided tools and equipment to boost productivity
- Constructed a drying and processing center and storage facility
- Supported learning exchanges and experiences
Anticipated Project Results
- 161 leaders trained in good agricultural practices
- 160 hectares of cocoa rehabilitated
- 89 toolkits delivered to families
- 1 storage facility constructed
Funder: Corporate Donor
Contact: Yamil A. Roger Nasser at yroger@acdivoca.org
