Name: Erica Kyere
Age: 29
Occupation: Kuapa Kokoo Ltd Communications Manager
Divine Chocolate is the only Fairtrade Chocolate company owned by cocoa farmers. The success of Divine means that farmers of the Kuapa Kokoo cooperative in Ghana can have a secure source of Fairtrade income, and a share of Divine profits, to transform their lives. Erica is a key contact between Kuapa Kokoo, Divine Chocolate Ltd, and the educational charity it set up Trading Visions. She is responsible for research & development, education programmes and communications.
Vision: I grew up in the small town Mampong, near Kumasi, Ghana, with my family. As a child, I aspired to be a banker, as I believed all that mattered in life was earning a lot of money and having all the good things in life. I knew that to be able to have a good life, I had to study hard to secure a very good job. So, I went on to study for my degree in Economics in Management at the University of Ghana before taking a master’s in Business Administration at the Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology. After graduation, I worked for a project sponsored by USAID (United States Agency for International Development) called Community School Alliance, and as part of my job, we travelled far and wide to the remotest parts of Ghana. The communities we worked with were very poor – most of them had no electricity and water. But when I saw many social projects that had been provided by Kuapa Kokoo, I was very inspired and wanted to be a part of that. I realized that the world was not a
bout only the finer things, but rather how well you are able to help other human beings make something out of their lives. I received a lot of training, which I took very seriously, and Kuapa Kokoo offered me opportunities other companies in Ghana would not have given to somebody who was fairly young with very little experience.
Challenges: A challenge I faced when I started the job was how to deal with the media. I was very conscious of the fact that I could be misquoted or misrepresented at any given time. Of course, I overcame this worry by learning how to communicate more effectively. There is also a negative perception of farming. My friends laughed when I told them I was abandoning my dreams of becoming a banker to take up an appointment with a farmers’ organization. They saw it as giving up the glamour associated with the banking industry to take up a rural lifestyle. Now they all realize that I made the right decision, and I am very satisfied with my job!
Most enjoyable: I enjoy the fact that I am the first point of contact for most visitors to the only cocoa cooperative in the world that owns a chocolate company. It gives me the opportunity to sell the organization the best way possible, and I am also able to travel around the world to talk about Divine Chocolate and Fairtrade and what they mean to Kuapa Kokoo. It is great that ownership of Divine Chocolate has given farmers a voice in the global chocolate industry and the benefits associated with that. I feel fulfilled when a farmer smiles at me after I have done something that he thinks has impacted on his life positively. I think it is with determination that the farmers were able to do an extraordinary thing like starting the cooperative, and they are very proud of owning a stake in Divine. Also, I enjoy working with the schoolchildren and serving as a positive female role model who t
hey can look up to. Kuapa Kokoo has impacted on my life positively, and working here has encouraged me to be very determined in life.
For further information about the Kuapa Kokoo farmers and the story of Divine, please visit www.divinechocolate.com or email info@divinechocolate.com
