Knowledge is power: The impact of Cafédirect’s training workshops
In January 2007, we held a workshop for farmer leaders, aimed at helping them manage their organisations. The training addressed topics including the history and functioning of their own organisation, the importance of communication within the organisation, and market tendencies and their influence on prices. The workshop was a great success and participants commented on the effectiveness and importance of this training.
Marcelino de la Cruz, President of the Education Committee, participated in the workshop and remarked, “The things we have learnt help strengthen our organisation. In the highly competitive world in which we live, the most efficient tool to fight this competition is knowledge. The workshop has been very important for us. We realised that we did not know the history of our organisation so well, let alone understand fully how the market functions. We, farmers as owners of the organisation, need to know how the organisation functions, and also how it operates within market dynamics.”
Participants plan to replicate the workshop with other farmers in order to share the learning with others. “One thing is for sure, we will share the things we learned with the other members. You know, we were privileged to participate in the workshop, but all members have the right to receive the same information. That is why it is so important to replicate this workshop.” said Felix de la Cruz, member of Education Committee.
Marcelino will use the training he has received to pass this knowledge on to other farmers. “I will explain to people that when there is a lot of cocoa on offer and there is little demand, then prices will go down. And the other way round when there is very little cocoa and demand increases – that’s when we can expect higher prices for our cocoa.”