By: Alusine Rehme Wilson✍️
With support from the European Union through the PRO-Act 2015 Resilient Project Cooperazione Internationale (COOPI) has trained over 200 Smallholder Cashew Farmers in Kambia, Port Loko, Bombali, and Karene on Safety Standards in Cashew Processing and General Food Safety from August 25 – 4th September 2020.
The training which was held in four different locations in the districts headquarter towns of Kambia, Port Loko, Bombali, and Karene respectively catered for over fifty Cashew Farmers and Processors in the each of the four districts.
Elvis Lamin Koroma was lead facilitator of the entire training. He disclosed to Northern Times that the training featured a number of key issues but importantly it was tailored to fit the participants who were thoroughly guided on topics such as: What is Food Safety, its standards, concepts and processes, As well as the Health and Safety of the Consuming Public and the Needs for Safe Cashew Processing and Safe Food.
When asked about his expectation from the participants, Mr. Koroma said COOPI is expecting the participants who are primarily Cashew Processors and Framers in the Northern Region to thoroughly implement all safety measures while Processing Cashew at their various CPUs for the Consuming Public.
“The World is currently moving towards Standardization and Sierra Leone is no exception, which is why, we have the Standards Bureau in the county. So I’m encouraging the Cashew Farmers and Processors as well as the Private sector to invest in local production-packaging and the work of local farmers to help them to attract more buyers and also be able to compete in the world market,” Mr. Koroma urged.
Speaking on behalf of other participants Madam Fatmata Sesay a Cashew farmer from Kamabai thanked COOPI for the training and all the support they are proving to herself and 19 other Cashew Womens Farmes in Kamabai. She recalled how the COOPI established community savings scheme and the Cashew Processing Unit is elevating their farm work and also promised to share her knowledge with her “Masiyanday” group members upon her return from the training.
Favour and Mariama Kanu Sesay from Ladeka ABC, a leading Cashew Farmers Group at Makump Bana in the Bombali District, acknowledge that the safety training is very much vital and that it will improve their capacity as indigenous farmers and thus avowed that her group will implement fully all skills learnt from the training.
She also revealed that her group Ladeka is a leading beneficiary from COOPI support and that they are set to take control of the newly built CPU by COOPI when they shall hand it over to them.
“We are thankful that we are now considered among the prominent Cashew Farmers in the country with the largest cashew processing machine in the country which was donated to us through the BAFS project, we are however seeking for continued support to increase our work.” She noted.
Co-Facilitator of the training Roland Griffin, who doubles as the Assistant M & E Officer at COOPI, told Northern Times that he is impressed by the turnout and responses of participants in all four operational districts of COOPI that have participated in the training and further assured the farmers and the general public of his organization’s continued support to the growth of smallholder Cashew Farmers and Processors to enable them become fully capacitated to produce more Cashew that will uplift them and the country’s economy in the nearest future.
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