ETHIOPIA: SIDAMA KOCHO COOPERATIVE

In April of 2023, HASAN was excited to team up with Sharbatu Birru and other local partners in the Sidama state of Ethiopia to begin the Sidama Kocho Cooperative, a long term program that will work to showcase, preserve and enfranchise the cultural heritage of the Sidama people. Kocho is a flatbread made from the fermented pulp of the Enset (E. ventricosum) or false banana tree. Climate and nutrition scientists have identified Enset as a super-food and wonder-plant that could provide food security for over 100 million at-risk people. HASAN is working with Sidama women to create cooperatives so that they may sell their kocho bread to other states in Ethiopia as well as export it to the global market.