News

09. November 2026

An Empowerment Hub brings electric tractors to Rwanda’s small farms: Inside the Volkswagen–GIZ GenFarm partnership

In Gashora, Rwanda, farmers book a solar-charged electric tractor, driver included, instead of buying one. Volkswagen, GIZ and their partners are testing whether that model can bring machines to small farms across Africa.

04. November 2026

Building Climate-Resilient Cocoa: Empowering Farmers, Strengthening COCOBOD and Securing Sustainable Supply Chains

When climate change reaches the cocoa farm, its impact does not stop at the farm gate; it travels through Ghana's cocoa sector and all the way to chocolate markets in Germany and Europe.

19. October 2026

New guidelines on voluntary contributions to help close living wage gaps in the banana sector

IDH and GIZ have jointly developed practical guidelines on voluntary contributions (VCs) under the “Better Together” collaboration which promotes alignment between retailer initiatives in Belgium, Germany, the Netherlands and the UK working towards living wages in the banana sector.

09. October 2026

Advancing Dialogue on Living Income at GCP10 and SCTA 2026

How can Responsible Purchasing Practices strengthen farmers' livelihoods and long-term coffee supply? During several coffee events in Switzerland, taking place from Sep 28th – Oct 2nd (“Swiss Coffee Week”), SASI joined discussions at GCP's 10th anniversary and the SCTA Coffee Forum, exploring how long-term partnerships, collaboration and responsible procurement can contribute to living incomes and resilient coffee supply chains.

01. October 2026

Towards Living Wages in Colombia's Banana Sector Closing Workshop

After three years of implementation in Colombia, the Towards Living Wages in the Banana Sector project has concluded its national implementation phase. While field activities in Colombia have come to an end, project coordination and stakeholder engagement will continue until mid-2027 under the leadership of the GIZ team in Germany, supporting the transition of ongoing processes and continued dialogue among partners.

30. September 2026

Collaboration Paves the Way for a Common Vision for Responsible Coffee Procurement

The Global Coffee Platform, Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ), IDH and Solidaridad have announced their collaboration to jointly develop a Coffee Sector Guidance for Responsible Procurement

29. September 2026

Learning & Scaling Digitalization Workstream: Round Two

After the kick off in may, partners from four ongoing due diligence projects came together to explore how their digitalization initiatives can create lasting impact beyond individual project lifecycles. Facilitated together with DIASCA colleagues, the session focused on a simple but ambitious goal: learning from one another and identifying opportunities to scale successful approaches.

24. September 2026

Launching the MTSS Communication Campaign on wages and labour rights

Kick-off event: On September 17, Costa Rica’s Ministry of Labour and Social Security (MTSS) and GIZ launched a joint communication campaign on wages and labour rights in the banana sector. The campaign aims to bring together complementary actions and make information on wage regulations and support channels more accessible to workers and employers, as part of a broader cooperation to improve wage conditions and advance Living Wages.

04. September 2026

Strengthening Responsible Purchasing Practices in the Banana Sector

How do retailers’ purchasing practices affect suppliers and workers in banana supply chains? A joint assessment involving 12 European retailers and 34 suppliers provides new insights into responsible purchasing practices, highlighting differences in perceptions and key areas for improvement. The findings now provide the basis for retailer-specific action plans and sector-wide guidance to support structural progress towards living wages.