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Bougainville cocoa farmer Ishmael Toroama has a dream: “One day I’d like to be able to buy a bar of Amataa chocolate – with a focus on the flavor!” he says with a broad smile. A former Chief of Defence of the Bougainville Revolutionary Army, Toroama was part of Bougainville’s 10 year struggle to close the controversial Panguna copper and gold mine and gain independence from Papua New Guinea.

Toroama’s body bares the scars of many hard fought battles. Now he’s a leader of a different kind. In the prevailing period of peace since the 2001 signing of the Bougainville Peace Agreement, which he was a signatory to, Toroama has returned to what his family has done for generations and what used to do as a 16 year-old boy – grow large, juicy Bougainville cocoa beans.

His group, the Amataa Sustainable Cocoa Project, is part of an agricultural movement to revive Bougainville’s international reputation for producing good size beans with sweet flavor. At his block near the recently re-opened international Aropa airport, Toroama points out the many varieties of plants he’s working with, and a new large capacity cocoa dryer.

“We have a lot of different varieties growing, some which have been grown in Bougainville during the colonial plantation days and some newer varieties too,” “It’s about having the right plants for our conditions here, which can be swampy because of the low lying ground.”

Toroama’s Amataa group, together 25 others, received a boost recently under the Commodity Support Facility grants scheme. Supported by the Australian and New Zealand Governments, the grants will be used to grow the quality and quantity of production with improved planting stock, technical advice and innovation and connection to overseas markets. The assistance to re-energise Bougainville’s once productive cocoa sector is a priority for Bougainville’s government. Minister for Primary Industries and Mineral Resources, Hon Nicholas Darku, said the funds would help farmers realise the value of their land.

“We are blessed with rich agricultural land and a history of producing premium quality, organic cocoa and copra”, Minister Darku said. “Bougainville must use the ground we have to make money – for people’s pockets and for government service delivery.”

“This program will not only support farmers to increase production, but focus on quality and to linking to export markets such as Indonesia and Malaysia.”

Minister Darku said cocoa was the obvious first choice for support from the broad-based Commodity Support Facility grants fund.

“We already have interest overseas interest in Bougainville cocoa. The government is planning the first export of 20 containers in May. So this is very exciting for the cocoa industry, but for Bougainville as a whole. We need to move from agriculture to agri-business and this program is connecting farmers straight to the manufacturer.”

Toroama says restoring cocoa production in his area serves another important purpose: a way of providing employment and teaching youths in the area the value of work for money.

“Young people need to sweat to see what is needed to make a living. This is something important our next generation must be taught. “In that way, I see Bougainville as a chocolate maker of the future”, Mr Toroama said.

Another grant recipient, Donatus Pan-Ula says he has had strong support from his community for the effort to rehabilitate old cocoa plantations.

“We have set up community work days for cocoa farming and other activities.” He says it is hard work, but it will bring money into people’s pockets.

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