Mars, a partner and board member of the International Cocoa Initiative, has launched a new report that explores the company’s progress and lessons learned in the fight against child labour and forced labour in their cocoa supply chain.
The report offers insights into specific action that Mars is taking to address human rights issues. For instance, it reviews the company’s Child Labour Monitoring and Remediation Systems, which have now expanded to cover 58,000 farming households in Cote d’Ivoire and Ghana. It also notes an increase in membership of Village Savings and Loans Associations, which can play an important role in strengthening women’s empowerment and improving access to finance.
ICI is pleased to see Mars’ progress and commitment to scaling up effective systems to prevent and address child labour and forced labour in its cocoa supply chain and to support efforts to boost cocoa farmers’ livelihoods. ICI and Mars will continue to collaborate to scale up child protection in their supply chain.