More than 2,000 people from the provinces of Guayas, Manabí, Esmeraldas, Los Ríos, Santo Domingo, Orellana, Napo, El Oro and Pichincha., in Ecuador have been trained in traceability to adapt the cocoa value chain to the requirements of the EU Regulation (EU) 2023/1115 on deforestation-free products (EUDR).
The training process is part of the second phase of the project “...".“Trainer of Trainers”which has been running since 12 June and which has trained 82 people as trainers who, in turn, have replicated the learning among some of their 1,900 implementers. The latter will receive a certificate that enables them to inform more operators in the cocoa value chain about the requirements and compliance with the EUDR. Both trainers and implementers are technical staff from collection centres, exporters, private companies, associations and cooperatives in the Ecuadorian cocoa sector.
On 23 January, a training and capacity building event took place in the canton of Milagro, in the province of Guayas, marking the official closure of the replication process. The event was held at the Asociación 2 de mayo, a grassroots organisation of the Unión de Organizaciones Campesinas Cacaoteras (UNOCACE). Led by four UNOCACE trainers, it was attended by 90 participants - 40 % women and 60 % men - from the public (2 %) and private (98 %) sectors. All of them received a certificate of specialisation as implementers.
“Trainer of trainers” is a joint initiative of the Agencia de Regulación y Control Fito y Zoosanitario del Ecuador (Agrocalidad) and AL-INVEST Verde, with the technical support of Trias. The training has allowed the delivery of training workshops structured in four thematic modules - EUDR, traceability, geo-referencing and GUIA System - with the objective of strengthening technical and operational capacities for EUDR compliance and sustainable access to international markets.
About AL-INVEST Verde
AL-INVEST Verde is a European Union (EU) programme whose main objective is to promote sustainable growth and job creation in Latin America by supporting the transition to a low-carbon, resource-efficient and more circular economy. Through Component 2, led by FIAP in consortium with IILA, the programme provides assistance for strengthening public policies and multi-stakeholder dialogues on sustainable agricultural and value chains, environmental and labour standards, as well as sustainable trade and economic policy and regulatory frameworks.