Sustainable Cotton for school education in Benin and Zambia
Tchibo and the Aid by Trade Foundation (AbTF) have been committed to expanding the school infrastructure in the rural areas of Africa since several years. Thereby they support children of African cotton farmers beyond supporting sustainable cotton production. In Benin in western Africa, the school project was successfully completed this year. Another school project underway will also benefit numerous children in Zambia. One of the children who benefit from this commitment is 13 year old Mary. A moving film accompanies her and Hannah from Germany throughout a normal school day: http://youtu.be/3vknwEzjV0s.
Both Benin in western Africa and Zambia in eastern Africa are among the poorest countries in the world. This especially affects the rural population. Going to school is a rarity for many African children. To provide children of cotton farmers with the opportunity to receive an education is the goal of Tchibo and the Aid by Trade Foundation with its Cotton made in Africa (CmiA) initiative. Tchibo and the AbTF laid the cornerstone of their commitment in 2010 in cooperation with local partners, the Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ) and the Deutsche Investitions- und Entwicklungsgesellschaft (DEG) in Benin. The school project was completed this year and proved to be a great success: More than 750 children were able to learn in a peaceful atmosphere thanks to five newly built school buildings equipped with solar energy. In 66 newly constructed school cafeterias, the children of farmers receive healthy meals prepared with food from the new school gardens. In addition, the school libraries were equipped with 10,000 books, and there are 20,000 locally produced school uniforms for the children.
Expanding the Commitment in Zambia
Since 2012, Tchibo and the Aid by Trade Foundation together with the local cotton company Cargill and the Deutsche Investitions- und Entwicklungsgesellschaft (DEG) in the context of developing partnerships with the private sector engage in Zambia. With five built schools first successful results can also be celebrated in this country from which the children of African smallholders benefit primarily: Each school complex is equipped with its own borehole. This ensures that both the school children and the surrounding communities have access to clean drinking water. Five additional school buildings are expected to be completed by mid 2015. At the already built and those that will be finished in 2015 school gardens will ensure children’s food security and a place where the children playfully learn the basics of sustainable farming methods.
The Movie Shows: A School Day in the Life of Mary and Hannah
“When I wake up every morning, it’s too early and most of the time I’m very tired. This makes getting up a little hard. But I look forward to seeing my friends at school.” Is this sentence from Hannah from Germany or Mary from Zambia? In a moving video, both talk about their school day. Mary is 13 years old, the daughter of an African smallholder farmer who grows cotton according to sustainable CmiA standards. Recently she visits one of the newly built schools in eastern Zambia. Even if Hannah and Mary are different in many ways, their school life between the big break and math class is still similar. Watch the entire movie here.
Since 2008, Tchibo has increasingly relied on “Cotton made in Africa” cotton and is one of the world’s largest buyers. With every purchase of CmiA products, the customer directly contributes to improving the living conditions of smallholder farmers and their children. About 70% of the processed cotton at Tchibo will come from responsible sources (Organic, Organic Blend, CmiA, Better Cotton Initiative i.a.) this year.
More Pictures: https://www.dropbox.com/sc/5l8dno0qy0vsfxc/AAAdcinivOyfrCUPc6RI7Z02a
Get to know what stands behind the project and the work of CmiA – farmers, representatives of Cotton made in Africa and Tchibo explain more about it in the second film.
About Tchibo: Tchibo stands for a unique business model. Tchibo operates more than 1,000 Tchibo Shops, approx. 26,000 Depots at third-party retail outlets, and national online shops in eight countries. The company uses this multi-channel distribution system to offer coffee and the Cafissimo single-serve system, along with weekly changing non-food ranges as well as services in travel, mobile telecommunications and green energy. Tchibo and its 12,450 employees worldwide generated revenues of EUR 3.5 billion in 2013. Tchibo is the roasted coffee market leader in Austria, the Czech Republic, Germany and Poland and one of the leading e-commerce companies in Europe. Its sustainable business policies have earned the family business, which was founded in Hamburg in 1949, multiple awards including the award for Corporate Ethics and the Environmental Logistics Award in 2012 as well as the Federal Government’s CSR Award in 2013.