IICD supported project: ICT for the optimisation of production, marketing and social organisation of cacao growers in Ecuador

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Countries: Ecuador [EC]
Sectors: agriculture livelihood
image: project in state 4

Summary

The Maquita Cushunchic Comercializando como Hermanos (Marketing Like Brethren - MCCH) Foundation seeks to improve the living situation of rural organizations, through an alternative marketing model. In 2002, organizations in the provinces of Esmeraldas, Manabí, Los Ríos, and some in Guayas - with MCCH coordination and international support for socio-productive projects - set up the CORPROCE movement: "Corporation of Cacao Growers of Ecuador", whose slogan is "Small farmers united in solidarity building livelihoods". This organization involves organizations' grassroots, working in gathering centers in their areas of influence, to guarantee product quality, acquire suitable infrastructure to generate the process of gathering, quality treatment, drying and transporting the cacao. The CACAO ICTs project will provide integrated support to implement community production systems using ICTs, including connection through short-wave links, Internet, and magnetic files for socio-production-commercial decision-making.

Objectives

To transform Gathering Centers into Operating and Business Centers so organizations can improve and optimize their socio-productive and commercial work with cacao growers. The project will optimize three lines of action: socio-organizational, production and marketing. This involves the overall arrangement, along with the national Information and Communication system using different ICTs. These technologies will be used according to each sector's characteristic, to guarantee systematization and efficient use of data in MCCH's zones of agricultural intervention.

Planned outputs

The project, during five years of work divided into three phases, expects to develop the IT tools during Phase 1 (18 months), including data collection and analysis; activate communication via Internet-Web; setting up short-wave radio links, and purchasing equipment for eight Gathering Centers. Following phases are expected to prepare educational material, for socio-productive-commercial training with organizations throughout the country, and publication on the Web of small farmers' social and production information, expanding the project to all cacao organizations working with MCCH.

Specific results:

A specialized database to effectively administer local and international production and marketing management, with the possibility for situational analysis and forecasts.
Constant information exchange among cacao growing organizations, and marketing and/or socio-productive support organizations.
A communication system, installed and active, using multiple technologies.
A centralized database to administer socio-productive project actions, covering organizations' planned needs.
Target group training in basic ICTs, data collection and analysis.

Development Impacts

To support the development and strengthening of the Network of Cacao Farmers of Ecuador, guaranteeing the Network's continuity and sustainability, on the basis of the increased profitability generated. Individual centers will improve their sales and the living standard of cacao-growing families will improve.

Management and organisation

Since 1991 MCCH has worked with cacao farmers in rural areas of four provinces of Ecuador, where the beneficiaries handle their production and most of the marketing. Local project administration comprises areas of MCCH who interact and continually oversee progress with projects under way: the MCCH Executive Director, MCCH Financing Projects, MCCH IT Systems, Financial Area, and IICD, which will be a strategic project partner.

Market and finance

Ecuador contributes some 3% of world cacao production, but 1% of the world's mills. Ecuador's largest cacao producing province is Los Ríos (23%), followed by Guayas (21%), Manabí (20%), Esmeraldas (10%), El Oro (6%), and Bolívar (4%). Some 60% of Ecuadorian cacao production is exported as dried beans, 35% is absorbed by domestic industry, and 5% is consumed locally on a cottage-industry basis. Technical training, use of technology to administer, use and disseminate information on production and negotiation decision-making, and organic certification all directly influence cacao prices, which can be significantly higher. This will directly provide sufficient income to cover production and marketing expenses for 2004 through 2006. MCCH will collaborate by providing the installed infrastructure, technology, dissemination of knowledge and other services that the MCCH Foundation already has, and will make available the new communication system. Beneficiaries will support the second and third phases by contributing to maintain equipment and part of the required supplies. The Gathering Centers are expected to have 25% quarterly profit as a result of the commercial work.

Lessons learned

The MCCH training process has enabled most of the target group to use commercial information (pricing) beneficially.
Gathering centers must sign an agreement prior to joining the project, in order to ensure that both parties know their duties and rights.
There is a cacao marketing system in effect involving community gathering centers and MCCH export processes.