MASO is a five year programme, focused on creating employment opportunities for the youth (aged 18-25) in Ghana’s cocoa communities.
“The beginning of every journey is not easy but if you have the can do spirit, you will succeed” – Elizabeth Kufuor.
Elizabeth is 22 years old and part of the first cohort of MASO youth trained in cocoa agronomy in Kasapin, a cocoa-growing community in the Brong Ahafo region. She was a pupil teacher in one of the primary schools in her community. After the MASO Programme entered her community, she decided to trade her classroom for the farm. MASO provided her with the needed skills to venture into cocoa farming through its Agro Academy (a farmer field school for training youth in cocoa agronomy, coaching and mentoring them to become professional cocoa farmers).
Like any other MASO participant, Elizabeth went through six months of intensive agronomic training, after which she sourced for land and planted seedlings supplied by the MASO Programme.
“I was a teacher before MASO and I never had a dream to be a farmer but the programme broadened my knowledge about agriculture and cocoa, so I decided to give it a shot”
Elizabeth now owns a 2-acre cocoa farm, she planted from the scratch.
Elizabeth as a youth leader
Elizabeth Kufour talking about her MASO experience at the Youth Forward Initiative annual meeting
The MASO programme also provides a platform for young people to connect, share ideas and best practices. This is intended to support them to inspire and challenge one another. Elizabeth has demonstrated leadership skills in her farmer field school and community over the last one year. As a result, she has received leadership training from the MASO programme. Elizabeth now believes MASO has built her self- confidence and also helped her take on the leadership role as the national secretary of MASO Connect.
“It was not easy but gradually I think I am improving. My position has also given me the opportunity to meet youth from other cocoa growing areas through the MASO Connect youth think tank. The group was created to help the youth come together to raise issues concerning their future and make contribute solutions to youth concerns. I am happy to be part of the group solving the challenges facing young people in cocoa growing communities”.
Elizabeth recently participated in the annual meeting of the Youth Forward Initiative in Kampala, Uganda where she shared her experience from the MASO Programme.
Post MASO training
Elizabeth has already completed her training in the MASO Agro Academy and plans on joining the Business Academy to train as an entrepreneur. She plans on increasing her farm size to six acres in the next couple of years.
She believes, “little drops of water make a mighty ocean” and the importance of “making hay while the sun shines”.
She sees a future in the cocoa value chain for young people her in her community and beyond.
Her decision to go into cocoa farming wasn’t an easy step. Like Elizabeth, many youths in Kasapin had no interest in cocoa farming. Despite the fact that Kasapin is a cocoa growing community. Cocoa farming is done by older people. There were no youth role models in cocoa farming to look up to. But now Elizabeth and her cohort of youth in Kasapin, are modelling themselves into young professional farmer’s other young people can look up to.
“People laughed at me when I said I wanted to be a cocoa farmer but I was not discouraged. Now they respect me”. She concludes.
