Impact Area 1:
Increasing women’s income

Through additional working capital and targeted marketing measures, Hope Givers can secure the pre-financing for the purchase and storage of shea nuts. This makes it possible to buy larger quantities of shea butter from the cooperative’s 2,000 producers. As a result, the women’s income increases by around 30%.

Impact Area 2:
Sustainable production base through a tree nursery

The wild-growing shea tree forms the essential foundation for shea butter production. However, its population is severely threatened by deforestation: charcoal production and land clearing for commercial agriculture endanger not only the production base but also the valuable shea parklands and their biodiversity.

In response, Hope Givers, together with the women’s cooperative and local communities, has established a tree nursery with 10’000 shea and moringa seedlings. On an area of 400 square meters, the seedlings develop into resilient young plants within about 18 months. These are then planted by the producers in small plantations near their communities – a crucial step in securing the long-term production base and strengthening local ecosystems.

Impact Area 3:
Production and distribution of eco-briquettes from shea waste

In the processing of shea butter, large amounts of organic residues are produced, which until now have been left to decompose unused. Hope Givers turns this into a resource: shea waste is transformed into fuel briquettes – a CO₂-neutral, locally available alternative to traditional wood fires for cooking.

The briquettes conserve forest resources, reduce emissions, and provide households as well as small businesses with a sustainable source of energy. The production facility is managed by women and serves as a model for a new income-generating business field. By utilizing the waste, around 74 tons of CO₂ can be saved annually – a measurable contribution to climate protection and the circular economy.

Linda Atibilla, a pioneer in empowering rural women through social and green entrepreneurship.

Linda Atibilla, raised in rural northeastern Ghana, holds a bachelor’s degree in environmental and resource management from the University for Development Studies in Tamale. Additionally, she holds a certificate in rural enterprise management from the Coady Institute at St. Francis Xavier University in Canada and is a graduate of the Young African Leaders Institute in Accra. With comprehensive entrepreneurial knowledge from various incubator courses, she is currently pursuing a master’s degree in agroforestry.

Previously, Linda was a Women’s Program Officer for Agri-Business and a Market Access Specialist at a local NGO in her home region, where she witnessed the issues of rural women migrating to urban areas and being exploited in cocoa plantations. Out of this concern, she founded the social enterprise Hope Givers with a significant portion of her salary from six years. Under her leadership, the company and a women’s cooperative with 2’000 members in over 25 villages have developed.