Nine female cocoa growers from rural Colombia, part of Atenea by Cordillera Chocolates, debuted as confident entrepreneurs at Bogotá’s top chocolate trade show.
Many of the women had never been to Bogotá. Some had never been on an airplane. But in November, nine female cocoa growers from rural Colombia arrived at the country’s biggest chocolate trade show as more than just cocoa farmers. They were newly confident entrepreneurs making connections with potential business partners from across the country and beyond. The women were among the first cohort of Atenea, Women Who Transcend, a sustainable livelihoods programme established in 2023 by Cordillera Chocolates. The business-to-business (B2B) brand is a major buyer of cocoa beans in Colombia and has well-established programmes to help cocoa farmers improve productivity, integrate agroforestry and more.
But as the Cordillera team spoke to farming households and community members, they saw an opportunity to help female cocoa farmers grow as entrepreneurs through training in cocoa and chocolate processing, financial education and leadership skills. Working with strategic partners Desjardins International Development (DID) and Colombian workforce development agency SENA, Cordillera founded Atenea with an initial focus on six cocoa farmer associations in the Urabá region of the department of Antioquia.
“Women in Colombia’s cocoa industry are the backbone of the rural household. But they often don’t have the self-esteem to recognise that. The Atenea programme helps them believe in themselves,” said Natalie Quintero Zuluaga, global B2B marketing director for Cordillera.
After more than a year of training in the programme, the first cohort of 101 Atenea participants graduated in October. Along the way, they established 11 new small business ventures making a variety of value-added chocolate products from their own cocoa, such as hot chocolate, bakery products, confectionaries dipped in chocolate and more.
These products have increased the women’s household income and awakened leadership skills at the same time.
“The programme has changed my life. I was not aware of my own capabilities as a woman, do you understand what I mean? I know they were in me but they were dead. The programme has helped me bring these abilities back, flourish and feel empowered,” said Yudis Torres, an Atenea participant and entrepreneur whose chocolate-dipped sweets have sold very well.
Stepping up to the big stage
At the trade show in Bogotá, the Atenea participants were having a surreal moment.
Representatives from national and international companies were trying the products that they had created and hearing the business pitches they had rehearsed countless times. And chefs were even using some of those products for live demonstrations on stage. People across Colombia and beyond were watching.
But they weren’t intimidated.
“These women are empowered now. They understand how the cocoa they grow can be turned into different types of products and they are the ones bringing new ideas for how to diversify their income through these more valuable products,” said Jorge Leon, sustainability manager for Cordillera.
The Atenea participants are advancing in other ways, too. One was recently selected to lead her cocoa farmer association, the first woman to do so.
Quintero attributes the success of the programme’s first cohort to a balanced focus on prosperity, partnership and leadership.
“It’s paramount that a programme like this drives more prosperity in the community. And we have learned a lot from our partners DID and SENA,” she said. “But if you do not train soft skills like leadership alongside the technical fundamentals, you will fall short. It’s quite beautiful when you listen to the Atenea women now: They are empowered.”
From students to teachers
As graduates of the Atenea programme, the first cohort are eager to share what they’ve learned.
“Thanks to Atenea and Cordillera, today I feel like an empowered woman with the strength to move forward, to keep growing as an entrepreneur and to share my knowledge with other women so they can shine too,” said Torres.
Many of them will have the chance to do exactly that. For the next cohort of Atenea, Cordillera will turn to the department of Córdoba, which is nearby Urabá. Atenea graduates from 2024 will serve as coaches and mentors to the next group.
“We are creating a movement,” Quintero said. “We want these women to be an inspiration for a new generation in Atenea.”
