Gang Life Not As Tempting As Kenco Coffee
Kenco’s Coffee vs Gangs project reaches its first anniversary and celebrates the graduation of its students.
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- Agency JWT London
Gang culture is a violent reality in Honduras, with its homicide rate ranking number one in the world.
Often gangs retain their power by outnumbering the police forces used to control them and recruiting members as young as 10.
Kenco together with JWT is trying to persuade youngsters away from joining gangs with its Coffee vs Gangs initiative.
Launched last year, the project trained 19 students – who were at risk of becoming gang members – about coffee farming, in a bid to tempt them to pursue a sustainable long term career. For many, this was the first time that they had been offered an alternative option for their future.
The year-long programme also worked on their numeracy, literary and business skills.
Now, the original scheme has come to an end and the enrolled students have graduated.
At the end of the year, Kenco awarded each of its participants a two year interest-free loan and a dedicated business specialist to encourage them to pursue their dreams and run their own business. Some want to start a coffee farm, others a beauty shop that sells coffee inside.
The project was documented online throughout the year via Kenco’s dedicated YouTube channel and website.
Followers could read about each of the participant’s stories, find out more about the project and read articles about gang life, violence and of course, coffee.
The good news is that the scheme will continue with another 20 youngsters enrolling in the autumn, as last year’s programme was such a success and made such a huge difference to the student’s lives.
