CASCADE: Committed Actions for Smallholder CApacity DEvelopment

CASCADE (an acronym for Committed Actions for Smallholder CApacity DEvelopment) is a concrete and impactful project to support natural rubber out growers and their families through capacity-building activities in Jambi Province, Indonesia.

CASCADE project is one of the first projects to adopt a value chain approach, starting at the first mile of the supply chain.

CASCADE project will train 1,000 smallholders to improve the productivity & sustainability of their practices. Capacity-building will also focus on farm diversification with the introduction of a new crop.

Thus, through increase and diversification of revenues, CASCADE will support the improvement of smallholders’ livelihoods. This makes a considerable contribution to the lasting improvement of living conditions of smallholders and their families.

Project Coalition

The project coalition involves diverse local & international stakeholders:

SETARA Jambi – a local NGO in charge of the enrollment and subsequent deployment of capacity-building activities to farmers
Kirana Megatara – an Indonesian rubber processor – supporting the project operationally, notably through its Anugrah Bungo Lestari (ABL) factory and Sourcing Development Officers (SDOs) in charge of farmers’ relationships
Michelin Group – a French tire manufacturer – project funder
Porsche AG – a German carmaker – project funder
Ksapa – a French mission-driven company – is responsible for program design & coordination

Supported by this coalition, this four-year project aims to address sustainability risks along the natural rubber supply chain in Indonesia, as identified by RubberWay™, by empowering smallholder farmers to adopt sustainable practices.

The SUTTI digital training tool from Ksapa is used to drive scalability and impact measurement.

Program Videos

What’s in for Farmers ?

What’s required for Farmers to be able to join the program?

Verbatim from Farmers

“I stopped school when I was 15 in 1991. I started to work on rubber in my plantation on my own. I never accessed training ever since. Cascade program is the first time in my professional life I accessed high quality and super concrete training.”. Farmer from Mekar Sari Village, Tebo Regency

“I’ve learned to tap less deeper. I didn’t know I was basically destroying my tree before. Now I get more hurting less my tree. So I can keep working with my trees longer.”. Farmer from Mekar Sari Village, Tebo Regency

“This program is amazing. Now a kilo of rice is more expensive than a kilo of rubber. With Cascade program, I generate more rubber, which helps to compensate a bit of the income we are losing with inflation.”. Farmer from Mekar Sari Village, Tebo Regency

“I have a small plot, only ½ hectare but thanks to Cascade program I was able to increase my monthly harvest from 50KG to 70KG.”. Women Farmer, Bungo Regency

“With my husband, we wanted to quit rubber and plant palm oil. Now with Cascade project we learned and think differently. We have decided to keep working in rubber for now”. Women Farmer, Bungo Regency

“Previously, I used to tap my rubber trees everyday. However, after the lower-frequency tapping module of the program, I know that tapping every 2 or 3 days preserves the tree while maintaining yield. Most importantly, this has saved me workdays and allows me to care for my family and children better”. Women Farmer, Bungo Regency

Verbatim from Local Authorities

“Cascade is doing amazing job with our farmers. Thank you for what you are doing for our community”. Tebo Regency Officials

“We need to maintain rubber in our region. Today our district of Tebo is losing 30-50ha of rubber plantation every month, turning to palm oil”. Tebo Regency Officials