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Ghana, Africa - Ghana Cocoa Board will continue to support initiatives aimed at eliminating the worst forms of child labour and forced adult labour in cocoa, COCOBOD Chief Executive Mr Tony Fofie, said on Tuesday. Speaking at a Cocoa Verification Board meeting in Accra to consider the country reports of Ghana and Cote d'Ivoire, Mr Fofie said the contribution of cocoa to the economy, especially in revenue generation and employment could not be underestimated. There is therefore the compelling reason to bring ideas, financial and human resources together to fight child labour in Ghana, he said. Read the entire story here.

ICVB Vision Statement

Verification is an essential step in assessing labor conditions in cocoa-growing communities in West Africa. The ICVB holds the strong conviction that accurate data will help guide strategic planning and programming to effectively address potential areas of concern, including child and forced adult labor. Properly verified data will ensure that future remediation activities are more strategic, cost-effective, targeted and synergistic. Our true stakeholders are the cocoa farmers and children and we measure our success or failure by how well their lives improve, in part, due to our work. Accurate data matters.

Verification Board Biographies:


Dr. Stephen Ayidiya is a lecturer and researcher of social work. His work over the past seven years focuses on the elimination of child labor. Dr. Ayidiya's UNICEF sponsored study of children in cocoa farms in Ghana makes him an important contributor to the verification board.

Ms. Alice Koiho Kipre has been the General Coordinator of the NGO Afrique Secours et Assistance (A.S.A) in Côte d'Ivoire since 1998. In this capacity she is responsible for all urgent interventions on behalf of trafficked children. Over the years she has worked closely with UN Agencies (UNHCR, ILO, WHO, UNICEF, etc.) as well as other humanitarian NGOs across Africa (Rwanda, Burundi, Mali and the Democratic Republic of the Congo). Her previous work also included assisting refugees and their children. Alice is a member of the National Committee on Child Exploitation and Trafficking, among many others. She also is the Head of RITE (Ivorian network of child trafficking and labour).

Mr. Andrews Addoquaye has technical expertise in plant engineering and agriculture together with education and extensive experience in globalization and labor rights and OSHA. His curriculum vitae marries highly specialized fields in a focused career that has invaluable relevance to dealing with the issues at hand.

Ms. Diane L. Mull is the Executive Director of the International Initiative to End Child Labor (IIECL) and a representative of the U.S. Child Labor Coalition. She is very well published in her work on child labor, agriculture, farming and vocational education. Ms. Mull is also an international consultant for many Africa, Latin America and Asia focused organizations, including the Academy for Educational Development, World Vision and World Cocoa Foundation.

Honorable Deputy Minister Antwi Boasiako Sekyere is Deputy Minister for Employment and Social Welfare, Ghana.

Mr. Malick Tohe is the Special Advisor to the Prime Minister, Executive Secretary SSTE, Côte d’Ivoire.

Mr. Jeff Morgan is the Director of Global Programs for Mars. He has worked in the Food and Agriculture industry for more than 31 years. He received his Bachelors Degree in Chemistry from Miami of Ohio and his Masters in Food Systems from The Ohio State University. Mr. Morgan has been engaged in finding ways to improve cocoa farming practices since well before the question of farm working conditions became a priority issue in 2001. Following the signing of the Harkin-Engel protocol in 2001 Jeff has focused much of his efforts on its successful implementation. He serves on the Global Industry Group as the coordinator for certification.

Ms. Isabelle Adam is General Secretary for the European Cocoa Association (ECA), based in Brussels. She has worked with a variety of non-profit and trade organizations as a communications specialist. Ms. Adam has extensive experience in the nonprofit sector and co-founded an organization that develops marketing and communications strategies for nonprofits. For the verification board she is representing the European cocoa industry.