Foreword Hendrik
If it had been up to me, Richard would probably never have become a part of fairafric. And that would be something I would very much regret today.
In 2020, I asked Akua, a Ghanaian chocolatier friend, for help in setting up training for chocolatiers. My idea was to train exclusively women and to make paid apprenticeships available to those who need this opportunity most urgently.
Akua loved the idea and agreed to train the first cohort of aspiring chocolatiers. However, on one condition: There should be at least one man in the team – she was convinced that this would be good for the team dynamics.
I left the selection to Akua, and that is how Richard found his way into our first cohort of chocolatiers.
What I only found out much later: In selecting "Richie," Akua – perhaps without consciously planning it – followed this very principle: to give the opportunity to those who need it most.
Enjoy getting to know Richard!
Best,
Hendrik
The start of an unexpected journey
It was 2020, and we had just opened our new factory. Finding qualified employees for chocolate production was not an easy task.
Although there are tens of thousands – if not hundreds of thousands – of well-educated young people in Ghana looking for work, there was practically no experience in chocolate production.
This is how the idea came about to train our future employees ourselves. The first group of our Chocolatier School was intended to consist of five highly motivated young people.
The fact that this was not an empty statement was also reflected in the management team at the time: the 9-member team consisted of four women and five men.
Meet Richard
However, the four young women who had already been selected asked Akua to also include a man in the team to ensure a better balance.
Since participation and consensus play a major role in Ghanaian culture, Akua began to think about which young man might really need this opportunity.
That was when Richard came to her mind.
A promising start
At this point, Richard had been unemployed for some time. After graduating from university, he had initially landed a promising job with the government. Unfortunately, the position was project-based and time-limited – and when the project ended, there was no budget to keep employing him.
Yet his career had started so promisingly. Richard had developed a great interest in computers early on, and his family supported his dream of studying Computer Science. To make these studies possible, Richard took a big risk: He financed his studies with a student loan.
That was a rare opportunity. In his year, only about 10% of young people in Ghana were able to start a university degree (for comparison: in Germany, this rate is about 78%).
Richard did not want to disappoint his family – and graduated with very good results. This earned him a job in a government project for the digitization of the national identification system.
But as is often the case in Ghana, this job was only temporary. When the project ended, his contract was not renewed, despite his good performance.
A new opportunity
Akua knew this – and offered Richie the chance to take a new path and learn the craft of being a chocolatier.
He did not hesitate for a moment.
Richie quickly became an indispensable part of the team. When we asked colleagues how they would describe him, we heard things like, "He is the heart of the team" or "the godfather of the department."
Richie welcomed new team members with open arms. He was happy to pass on his knowledge and supported others in learning. Over time, he also began to support management with organizational tasks – such as shift planning, inventory management, or machine maintenance.
Ultimately, all this led to Richie being offered the position of Assistant Manager – a role he fulfills today with great pride and commitment.
More than just a job
His entrepreneurial spirit also shows outside of the chocolate factory. When Richie heard about our interest-free loans for employees, he presented his own business idea.
During his time at university, students were constantly exchanging books among themselves because there was no affordable way to make copies. Since most students could not afford to buy every book themselves, they were dependent on this sharing – which was time-consuming and often meant they could only rely on their own notes.
His idea: open a copy shop right at the university so that students could easily make copies of the books they needed.
He received the loan from fairafric and now runs a successful copy shop. After being given the chance to build a livelihood for himself, he has since created jobs for others.
Richie has since fully repaid his student loan.
And there is more.
After completing his training and getting a permanent position at fairafric, he proposed to his girlfriend. Today, the two have three children.
Richie's goal is to continue growing in his role, train the next generation of chocolatiers, and climb another rung on the management ladder.
With his talent and dedication, nothing stands in his way.
fairafric Ghana Ltd. regularly grants interest-free loans to employees. Banks in Ghana rarely grant loans to individuals – and when they do, the interest rates are often around 30% or more.
Employees often use these loans to repay expensive student loans, pay rent in advance, or start small businesses.
Would you like to support us on our journey?
Find out how you can get involved and become part of the fairafric movement. Together, we are working to produce the first climate-positive chocolate Made in Ghana and to make the future of the chocolate industry more sustainable.
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