This week our annual Coffee Summer Camp came to an end. Our agronomist, Ephapras, was the visionary behind the camp. When he realized that children were not motivated to learn about coffee, he decided to come up with an innovative way to spark their interest. Back in 2015, he came up with the idea of running a coffee summer camp that could take place during school holidays. Since then, together with the help of our Coffee Scouts, he has been able to motivate hundreds of children to learn about coffee and recognize its value.
The theme for this year’s camp was “Ikawa wacu, kazoza kacu” which means “Our coffee, our future”. One of the major camp activities this year included the Scouts teaching about the Antestia bug and its link to the potato defect. To end off the camp, they took part in a month long Antestia-catching competition. Their response to the competition was incredible and by the end of it they had captured 248 046 bugs!
The camp ended just before the new school year began, so the prizes awarded to our Antestia-fighters included school uniforms, notebooks and stationery sets to encourage them with their future at school. Parents in the community were overjoyed that their children took part in the summer camp, because not only did it keep them occupied during the school holidays but it also empowered them with skills and opportunities. Leaders in the community were also proud that so many children have now taken a new interest in coffee.
We’ve haven’t had 790 children participate in a camp like this before, never mind catch 248 046 bugs. We’re curious to know if this impacts the ecosystem in any way. If anyone has any information on this, we would love to hear about it!
We couldn’t be prouder of all the children who participated in this year’s camp. We are also incredibly grateful to our team who are working extra hard to engage with and empower farmers. If this summer camp has taught us anything, it’s that there is great hope for the future of coffee in Burundi.
Coffee. People. Potential.