Village Savings and Loans Associations (VSLAs)

We work with farmers to expand their access to capital and financial services that enable them to invest in productivity, facilitate smoother household cash flows, gain broader access to markets and manage risks and impacts more effectively. This support can include other financial services such as crop insurance mechanisms.

Access to finance is one of ECOM’s material issues, and we work with partners to run initiatives that support farmers to gain access to financial services and credit. Developing productive, cost-efficient and resilient businesses can make a transformative difference to farmers.

In 2023, we helped more than 42,500+ farmers in our cocoa and coffee supply chains to gain access to credit, loans, insurance and other financial services. This included a new scheme in Vietnam that enabled 500 coffee farmers to obtain higher-quality fertiliser for improved yields. Across our direct cocoa origin supply chain, we have 1,353 active Village Savings and Loans Associations (VSLAs).

VSLA’s are small community groups, set up and run by the farmers themselves. All members pay affordable amounts (with a maximum amount everyone is able to contribute) into a savings fund, and any member who needs financial support can seek assistance. This means that members can access credit at much lower interest rates and invest in their cocoa farms or income-generating businesses such as shops and poultry keeping.

In Ghana, to support our Gender Equity and Social Inclusion strategy (read more here), we promote the use of VSLAs in cocoa-growing communities. As of September 2023, 52 VSLAs had been set up in 36 communities, with 1,283 women. The VSLAs had an average of 23 members and 260 people were elected for executive leadership positions (250 women and 10 men). In total, the VSLAs have collected $66,049.82 in savings to date (~$1,270 per VSLA) and disbursed $42,284.39 in loans for their members ($813 per VSLA).