Information service of the Pontifical Mission Societies since 1927
Abidjan (Agenzia Fides) - According to the International Labour Office (ILO), 1 million 800 thousand children are engaged in cocoa plantations in West Africa, among these only 284 thousand are considered workers. The study shows that the majority of these children are forced to work over 12 hours a day, especially in Côte d' Ivoire, leading producer of cocoa, where more than 12 thousand children live in conditions of slavery. Currently 4 million tons of cocoa are produced in the world, the sale of which generates an income of over $ 100,000.
82% of the world harvest is concentrated in Côte d' Ivoire, Ghana, Indonesia, Nigeria and Cameroon. The producers of these countries live below the poverty line. Europe consumes half of the chocolate that is produced all over the world (48%), followed by North America (20%), Asia (15%) and Latin America (9%). (AP) (Agenzia Fides 07/05/2014)
