For years, early childhood learners at Edwenase M/A Basic School in the Asunafo North Municipality of the Ahafo Region faced an uphill battle in accessing quality basic education.

Eighty-two children in Kindergarten One and Two were forced to study in a single overcrowded classroom, where many sat on raw wooden logs due to a severe lack of classrooms and learning materials.

The school, which serves six hard-to-reach rural farming communities, including Kyeameasua, Asuboi, Ahenkro, and Charleskrom, has long struggled with severe infrastructure deficits.

Relief has finally arrived through the Asunafo North Municipal Cooperative Cocoa Farmers and Marketing Union Limited, with funding support from Tony’s Open Chain and the Chocolonely Foundation.

On Wednesday, May 20, 2026, the Union and its partners commissioned a modern, fully furnished classroom block complete with standard furniture, offices, storerooms, electricity for ICT learning, and ceiling fans to reduce intense afternoon heat.

The Union and its partners had earlier commissioned a three-unit classroom block for Anwianwia Methodist Junior High School to enhance effective teaching and learning in the rural community.

In Manukrom, another rural community, they also handed over a modern four-unit teachers’ quarters to address a long-standing accommodation crisis that often discouraged teachers posted to the area from reporting for duty.

Mr Samuel Jatong Laar, Asunafo North Municipal Director of Education, lauded the group for its numerous interventions, including the drilling of mechanised boreholes, the distribution of educational materials and tricycles, and the donation of a modern multipurpose printer to the Municipal Education Directorate.

Mr Joseph Akparibo, the Municipal Chief Executive (MCE) for Asunafo North, said the government alone could not meet all the developmental needs of the people, stressing that private-sector support had become crucial and timely, especially at a time when foreign aid and grants had declined significantly.

Mr Akparibo noted that the municipality still faced severe classroom deficits across all educational levels, from kindergarten to senior high school and tertiary institutions.

He thanked the Farmers Union, Tony’s Open Chain, and the Chocolonely Foundation for investing directly in the farming communities that form part of their cocoa supply chain.

The MCE also expressed appreciation to cocoa farmers in the municipality for pledging a sustainable supply of cocoa in return and urged beneficiary communities to maintain the facilities properly to ensure value for money.

The collaborative model demonstrated in Asunafo North reflects a growing global shift in corporate social responsibility and sustainable sourcing strategies, where direct corporate investment in source communities yields mutual benefits.

Mr Erasmus Kumah Hemans, Manager of the Asunafo North Municipal Cooperative Cocoa Farmers Union, revealed that the Union had grown from 17 societies in 2008 to 41 societies across 26 communities, with a vision to bridge the income gap among its members by 2030.

Studies by institutions such as the International Cocoa Initiative show that such infrastructure investments directly reduce household operational costs and effectively increase farmers’ net incomes.

Academic research also consistently indicates that accessible, high-quality school infrastructure is one of the most effective deterrents to child labour in West African cocoa-growing communities.

In addition, data on sustainable sourcing suggest that multinational brands that co-invest in social infrastructure experience increased supply chain loyalty and reduced side-selling.