(Ecofin Agency) - Zallé Alimissi Salame, a cocoa farmer from the Tiokorodougou village in Côte d’Ivoire, is the 10, 000^th farmer to subscribe to the mobile banking scheme launched by the Swiss chocolate maker Barry Callebaut. This scheme aims to boost professionalization in the sector.

Clearly put, the scheme allows any producer who registers with Biopartenaire, Callebaut’s Ivorian subsidiary, to safely receive payment from the Swiss company by using a solar-rechargeable mobile phone. This payment can be used to purchase items or pay bills. It can also be cashed in at specific spots. “Now, producers have their money which they usually keep in cash safely protected and need not worrying about theft,” said the group.

Implemented through a partnership with mobile operator Orange, “the Barry Callebaut program falls in line with the group’s vision to improve the living standards of small producers,” says Andres Tschannen who initiated it.

The withdrawal fees as well as costs of the solar chargers are taken care of by the Swiss group through a public-private partnership with DEG (the German investment and development firm).

Barry Callebaut is world’s biggest chocolate maker with €5.6 billion sales during the 2014/2015 fiscal year.

Aaron Akinocho