Peremona Mafutaga, a female young koko farmer from Itu Asau, Savaii was one of the participants of the Youth Koko Coaching Course carried out by the Samoa Chamber of Commerce and Industry (SCCI) in partnership with the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP).

This is part of the ongoing Youth Koko Initiative under the COVID-19 Preparedness and Recovery: Revitalization, Expansion and Diversification of Agriculture and Fisheries in Samoa (RESDAFS) Project, funded by the Government of Japan.

Peremona joined 26 other young koko farmers like herself from her district and neighbouring villages for this training, held on March 14th to the 15th at Vaisala Hotel.

They went through key areas that they need to be equipped in as young koko farmers to be able to take their koko plantations to the next level.

The four main components of the workshop that the young farmers were trained in were:
Cocoa Coaching – led by Samoa Koko Industry Association President, Alo Kolone Vaai. The youth koko farmers learnt about the different aspects of cocoa tree care, farm management, pests and disease management, and weed control. This included field visits to koko farms in the area for hands-on training on how to prune koko plants.

Disaster management – delivered by SCCI Business Resilience Officer, Prince Lima, giving the youth a better understanding of the concepts of disaster readiness and business continuity planning, and to give them scenarios of how their businesses can be disrupted at any time. The participants were given the opportunity to brainstorm ideas and strategies for their business to be more resilient. Training also covered preparedness for farmers during the COVID-19 lockdowns.

Financial literacy – conducted by SCCI Chief Executive Officer, Lemauga Hobart Vaai. This component of the workshop was to assist farmers on cash flow management and how to manage financial lifestyle challenges as a youth farmer in the village.

Contract farming – led by consultant, Helen Skipps, covering areas of different contracts in cocoa farming and giving examples for the youth to understand different procedures and measures in relation to contracts.

“While trainings have been implemented in the Itu o Asau and Itu o Tane districts, we have had to postpone our training for our young koko farmers in Lefaga, Upolu due to COVID-19. We acknowledge our donor, the Government of Japan, for their ongoing support, and our partnership with the Samoa Chamber of Commerce and Industry,” said Tupe Crawley-Lemisio, REDSAFS Project Coordinator.

The young koko farmers and youth leaders were awarded certificates of completion at the end of the two-day workshop in the Itu Asau area in Savaii. All participants also received tools to help with their operations.

“The Chamber would like to acknowledge the youth farmers and youth leaders of Fagasa, Sataua, Papa Sataua and Falealupo and special thank you to Paulua Esera.”