Change is underway in Cote d'Ivoire.
Previously unexpected opportunities are upending
the job market.
For example, Linda never dreamed of working at a fly farm.
And now she's surprised how much she loves it.
As for Stéphane, he decided four years ago against
a traditional career path and created his own profession
in urban agriculture.
And Eva is learning to set up carbon projects in the forests of
the interior of the country,
as part of a pioneering project in Cote d'Ivoire.
What do these three young people have in common?
They are all working in the green economy as part of
the country's ecological transition.
When Linda started at the fly farm, her first days were difficult.
She hated being around the maggots and flies that are bred
for animal feed.
I was so afraid I didn't want
the flies to touch me.
I said I was going to wear long sleeves.
But the hardest part for Linda was dealing with
her family's prejudice about the unusual profession
she had chosen.
They said it was bound to affect my health, that maggots are a dirty
thing, that everything we do here is practically nothing but dirt
since we use waste and all.
But it was a bit weird at first.
They didn't really accept it.
I said that instead of staying at home and being a burden,
it's better for me to learn and discover something new.
Today, the young woman is proud to call herself an entomologist.
And has even convinced her mother to join the company.
In another part of Abidjan, Stéphane is also doing a job that didn't exist
when he was a student.
After completing his geography studies, he wanted
to be an urban farmer but found no company to take him on.
So he set up his own business, offering training courses
to individuals and schools.
For me personally,
a way of not depending on
the traditional employment system in
Cote d'Ivoire, which is: You leave
school, you look for a job in the public sector.
It was a way of showing that you can create your own job
and be financially independent.
Stéphane and Linda are on a green career path.
But they are still in the minority.
With many green job opportunities going unclaimed, the Ivorian
government is keen to entice more school leavers.
Green jobs aren't what you might
call 'sub-jobs'. Perhaps it's this aspect
that we don't manage to make
clearer to all those looking for work. So much so, that when
we direct them towards green jobs,
many refuse because they think they are sub-jobs.
But they are decent jobs.
In 2022, the ministry launched its
Integrated Strategy for the Promotion of Green Jobs in Cote d'Ivoire,
in an attempt to promote these sectors.
News has spread abroad, with some young graduates like Eva
coming from Europe to learn a new trade.
The 26 year old is working as a carbon project manager.
But she still lacks the experience needed to carry
out a forest inventory by herself.
Today, an experienced agronomist is showing her how to categorize
trees to find out whether this forest could be a successful carbon project.
I've never done this kind of thing,
so it's all new to me.
Forest inventories, I've never done
this kind of study.
So we need to work together.
I know all about carbon and the carbon market.
But not at all about the field.
So we really need to work hand in hand to achieve our goal.
After returning to Abidjan, Eva shares
her carbon market knowledge with her colleagues.
As everyone in the team is discovering the rules of the
carbon market at the same time,
it's both a challenge and a real professional opportunity
for all involved.
The dynamic growth of Africa's sustainability sector has caught
many by surprise.
It has also prompted the International Labor Organization
to publish a directory of green jobs and professions.
The aim of this catalogue
is to support vocational and
technical training structures in
their mission to accompany
Cote d'Ivoire in its development...
...which today is taking the path of ecological transition.
So it's to help them accomplish this task.
This catalogue has this first aim and the second is that it will help
companies that are already established to become greener.
Stéphane too is raising awareness and boosting skills in the green economy.
But he's doing it in Agboville, 80 kilometers from Abidjan.
He wants to reduce the growing skills gap between
the economic capital and elsewhere.
People living in the interior of
the country don't have the same
opportunities as people in Abidjan.
So for me, it's important to come
and create a new ecosystem in my field that will enable them to have
access to the type of employment that is beneficial to the environment.
Whether it's Stéphane opening minds to new green career paths,
Eva sharing in the development
of new sectors.
Or Linda embarking in a surprising new direction.
The green economy in Cote d'Ivoire is giving young people the chance
to work towards a better future.