SASI Updates from Côte d’Ivoire – Driving Change with Measurable Impact
Over the past few months, SASI has been working in collaboration with local and regional partners to drive impactful activities in Côte d’Ivoire. From empowering women in leadership roles to launching a partnership for sustainable rubber production and training smallholders in entrepreneurship across various value chains, significant progress is being made to shape sustainable agriculture supply chains.
Rubber: Empowering Producers and Communities with Sustainable Agricultural Practices

In partnership with Olam, GIZ’s global project “Sustainability and Value Added in Agricultural Supply Chains” has launched a pilot initiative to promote sustainable natural rubber production in Côte d’Ivoire's La Mé and Indénié Djuablin regions. Running from January to December 2025, the project aims to meet international sustainability standards while supporting rubber producers and their communities. Key objectives include:
- Training 1,000 producers in good agricultural practices.
- Raising awareness among 75 cooperatives about the European Deforestation Regulation (EUDR) and environmental issues.
- Equipping 300 women with skills in rural entrepreneurship, leadership, and financial literacy.
- Providing 50 young people with professional, sustainable rubber-tapping skills.
- Promoting gender and social inclusion in 10 rubber-producing communities.
This partnership is a significant step toward creating a more inclusive and sustainable natural rubber supply chain. It also highlights the importance of public-private collaboration in achieving sustainability goals, reinforcing the development and climate partnership between Côte d’Ivoire and Germany.
Cocoa: Strengthening Women's Leadership and Economic Empowerment

Together with Fairtrade Africa, GIZ—on behalf of BMZ—has launched the “Gender in Action Through Women School of Leadership Ambassadors” (GATA) project to empower women in the cocoa supply chain in La Mé region. Initiated in August 2023, the project focuses on enhancing leadership skills and fostering savings and investment among women. Achievements to date:
- Creation of 96 Village Savings and Loans Associations (VSLAs) with 2,880 members.
- Delivery of 128 training sessions on leadership, savings, and investment, enabling members to establish income-generating activities and achieve greater economic independence.
By fostering these skills, the GATA project has not only improved women’s incomes but also strengthened their confidence and decision-making abilities. Participants have become active contributors to the development of their communities and the cocoa supply chain. The project concluded with a closing ceremony in December 2024, attended by beneficiaries, local officials, and community leaders.
Cocoa, Coffee, and Rubber: Training Farmers for Sustainable Agriculture and Entrepreneurship

To enhance sustainability in agricultural supply chains, various training programs on sustainable production and entrepreneurship have been implemented across seven regions of Côte d’Ivoire since 2022. During a mid-term workshop in December 2024, stakeholders reviewed progress and celebrated the following results:
- 300 trainers trained and 7,950 farmers reached, with a target to support over 15,000 farmers by December 2025.
- 20 cooperatives received training to enhance their professionalization.
- Establishment of 20 VSLAs, which have collectively saved nearly 15 million CFA francs for investments.
- Formation of 20 agricultural service groups, along with 10 mushroom farms (using cocoa shells) and 10 poultry farms that integrate cocoa farming.
- Training of 175 participants in optimized rubber seed collection, leading to the collection of 10 tons of seeds and production of 150 liters of biodiesel from rubber seed oil.
Also, farmers and cooperatives have shared success stories about the impact of these initiatives on their incomes and livelihoods.
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These results clearly demonstrate that the collaborative efforts of the German Cooperation and its partners to shape sustainable agricultural supply chains have been completely successful. Cooperation remains the key to not only preserving Côte d’Ivoire’s valuable natural resources but also ensuring fair and equitable incomes for local communities!