For someone in the village, becoming a trainer who helps others succeed is often seen as something only possible with tertiary-level education and technical qualifications. However, this is not the case for 44-year-old cocoa Farmer named Jay Teika from Geza Village in Northeast Guadalcanal, who is now actively sharing his cocoa knowledge with farmers in his community on proper solar drying and fermentation techniques.
โI donโt have much formal knowledge on cocoa, but I do have a cocoa farm. I only apply the knowledge and skills I learned from ADRA cocoa training, and I now train Farmers in my village,โ Mr. Teika said.
He added, โI donโt like to keep or hide this knowledge. I share what I learned from ADRA cocoa training with my Farmers here to help them produce better quality cocoa beans for ADRA and other buyers,โ he said in an interview with the ADRA Communications Team.
This week, Mr. Teika organized a training for 17 cocoa farmers in Geza Village, including 7 women and 10 men, using very limited resources.
Mr Teika Teika, aged 44, comes from Geza Village in Northeast Guadalcanal. He is an ADRA cocoa Farmer and a father of four girls. He joined ADRA in 2015 as a cocoa Farmer and has since participated in most of ADRAโs cocoa training sessions conducted both in Honiara and in Geza.
Through these trainings, Mr Teika gained valuable knowledge in cocoa farming, fermentation, post-harvest handling, proper drying, and quality bean selection to meet market standards. Before this, he had limited knowledge in these areas.
โI donโt have resources to organize training, but I use the knowledge I gained from ADRA and share it with our local Farmers,โ he explained.
During the training, he taught Farmers how to properly ferment cocoa in boxes, dry beans under the sun, select quality beans, and transport cocoa from Geza to Honiara.
โI donโt have formal qualifications, but I use the training ADRA provided to me and pass it on to our Farmers,โ the 44-year-old cocoa Farmer said.
โI am happy to run this training even without support, because I want our Farmers to have the same knowledge and skills I receivedโโ
โKeeping knowledge to myself is not good. Sharing it helps everyone grow,โ he added.
He further expressed appreciation to ADRA, saying:
โI would like to thank ADRA for the trainings I attended. I have now become a trainer in my village to help other cocoa Farmers. We all want to produce good quality beans for the market, because when we export cocoa, we are representing our country, not just our village.โ
โThank you to ADRA Solomon Islands and to ADRA Australia for funding the cocoa training that allowed me to gain this knowledge, which I now share with my Farmers. It is really making an impact in my community,โ Mr Teika said.
Today, Mr Teika has grown into a community trainer. He has already trained 17 cocoa Farmers in Geza Village and number is growing, sharing the skills and knowledge he received from ADRA. He teaches proper fermentation techniques, post-harvest handling, drying methods, and cocoa bean selection to improve quality and market value.
As a result of applying these skills, his familyโs income has improved, and he has gained confidence in mentoring other Farmers. His role has now expanded from being a Farmer to but also becoming a local resource person in his community.
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