At least 1.68 million children across cocoa-growing communities in West Africa have been protected and supported through the Child Labour Monitoring and Remediation Systems (CLMRS) implemented by members of the International Cocoa Initiative (ICI).

This was contained in ICI’s 2025 Annual Report, which highlighted the progress attained by the organization in protecting children across cocoa-growing communities, despite a year marked by market volatility and regulatory uncertainty.

The report revealed that as of September 2025, the programme’s coverage had expanded to 1.33 million cocoa-farming households across Cameroon, Côte d’Ivoire, Ghana and Nigeria, up from 1.17 million in the previous year.

The report underscored the initiative’s growing focus on improving the quality, effectiveness and sustainability of these systems to deliver stronger outcomes for children and farming families.

Executive Director of ICI, Matthias Lange, highlighted that ICI members were committed to efforts in protecting children in spite of the difficulties that befell the sector.

“Despite the uncertainty and challenges, ICI members and partners remained committed to raising the bar on our efforts to protect children from child labour and uphold human rights across cocoa-growing communities,” he noted.

The CLMRS are child-centred support systems that identify children in, or at risk of, child labour, provide ongoing support to improve their situation and follow children’s progress over time.

It is aimed at preventing and reducing child labour, mitigating its harmful effects, and ultimately thwarting future consequences of child labour.

The CLMRS Core Criteria establish minimum standards for designing and implementing Child Labour Monitoring and Remediation Systems.

These criteria are complemented by a practical implementation manual and self-assessment tool to help organisations strengthen their systems and maximise their impact.

The ICI also emphasized its continued collaboration with government institutions in Ghana, Côte d’Ivoire and Cameroon to strengthen social welfare systems, improve data coordination and build institutional capacity for monitoring, referral and follow-up services.

Cocoa sector stakeholders were also equipped with practical tools based on years of research and field experience, including guidance on preventing children’s exposure to hazardous pesticides, addressing forced labour risks, improving grievance mechanisms and strengthening data management systems.

In the year under review, the ICI organised 25 knowledge-sharing sessions across West Africa and beyond to facilitate partners in translating learning into action.

With new international regulations reshaping cocoa supply chains, including the evolving European Union due diligence requirements and forced labour regulation, ICI collaborated with partners to develop practical recommendations for addressing forced labour risks in the cocoa sector.

For Ghana, these developments reinforce the importance of effective systems to tackle child labour that meet international expectations while delivering meaningful improvements for cocoa-growing communities.

“Our focus remains clear: to drive systemic change that is both scalable and sustainable. Through continued learning, partnership, action and innovation, we are expanding the reach and effectiveness of our work, bringing us closer to a future where every child is protected and able to thrive,” Mr. Lange said.