Let's have a Cup of Ambition

Through one of our key delivery partners, Emerging Leaders, Cup of Ambition has trained these farmers in leadership skills and financial literacy, helping unlock their potential and build resilience through income diversification.

In the year following the training, Emerging Leaders conducted follow-up evaluations to measure the impact against baseline data. Here are just some of the amazing results we've seen so far:

Increase in farmers engaging in income diversification

• Peru: 34% to 71%

• Malawi: 23% to 88%

• Rwanda: 20% to 92%

Increase in average monthly income for farmers

• Peru: Grew by 55%

• Malawi: Grew by 154%

• Rwanda: Grew by 195%

Increase in the number of farmers who report ‘always save’

• Peru: 6% to 25%

• Malawi: 2% to 74%

• Rwanda: 51% to 60%

As well as 100% of our tea and coffee being Fairtrade, we are also working with Fairtrade Africa to invest in new cookstoves for Ethiopian coffee farmers. These new cookstoves reduce household air pollution by 70% compared to traditional cooking techniques and carbon emissions from home cooking, they also produce a by-product such as biochar which can be used as a soil additive.

By the end of the project, 15,000 cookstoves will be distributed to families. The cookstoves will be produced locally by young members of the community; this will enable them to establish their position and feel valued within their community, as well as create opportunities to learn new skills and grow their income.

One of our tea growers from Rwanda, Murekatete Francoise

Murekatete Francoise, a mother of three, shared that before attending the Emerging Leaders training, she and her husband relied solely on income from tea farming but overlooked small yet significant details that led to unnoticed losses. Despite having enough land, their production was low, and they ended up buying vegetables instead of growing their own. They were purchasing fertiliser while having the potential to raise cows for milk and manure.

After the training, Francoise shared her learnings with her husband, and together they implemented changes that greatly improved their lives. She reported that they now grow their own vegetables, saving RWF 50,000 (£35) that they previously spent, and have reduced fertiliser costs by two-thirds by breeding cows.

Francoise said that these changes not only boosted her confidence but also improved her savings. She has earned the trust and respect of her community, with neighbours now seeking advice from her on how to replicate their success. She concluded by saying that, with these achievements, she now sees great potential for the future and feels hopeful about investing in their limited resources instead of relying on loans, leaving her with a sense of being truly valued.