Author: Manon Koningstein

We have an exciting vacancy: Progreso is looking for a Country Manager based in Colombia.

If you have a strong background in financial analysis and business advisory with coffee or cocoa producer organizations, and you care about the sector beyond the spreadsheet, this role might be a good fit.

As Country Manager, you’ll be embedded in our Colombia operations, working closely with our agroforestry expert in-country and our Latin America Programme Manager. Day-to-day, that means analyzing the financial health of producer organizations, advising on everything from cash flow projections to price risk management, and helping to build and sustain the partnerships that make projects actually happen. You’ll also collaborate with colleagues across Peru and Nicaragua, and play an active role in how Progreso represents itself externally in Colombia.

We’re looking for someone with at least five years of hands-on experience working with coffee or cocoa cooperatives in a financial or business advisory capacity, a degree in economics, accounting, or business administration, and fluency in Spanish (basic English is also required). Multi-stakeholder project experience and a track record of facilitating training or capacity-building processes are a strong plus.

The role is full-time (40 hours/week) on a consultancy basis, hybrid, and based in Colombia.

Applications close 17 May 2026. Send your CV to patricia@progreso.nl — virtual interviews are scheduled for 18–22 May.

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Progreso Foundation is pleased to welcome a new Project Manager to our team, someone whose path into agricultural development was never a detour, but always the destination.

Rooted from the start in a world where agriculture shapes daily life, our newest colleague built a career guided by a single conviction: that agricultural development must be people-centered, structured, and adapted to local contexts. A Master’s in Management of Agropastoral Enterprises and Organizations gave that conviction a framework; years in the field, with the Ministry of Agriculture, MIRAH, Action Against Hunger, and GIZ, gave it depth.

Across those experiences, the thread remained consistent: analyzing value chains, supporting farmers, and contributing to initiatives that improve agricultural systems in lasting ways. Joining Progreso, he tells us, feels like a natural continuation of that journey.

What motivates him most? Seeing projects come to life on the ground, create real value, and improve the living conditions of communities. That is precisely the kind of energy we want around this work.

Outside the office, he writes, sometimes poetry inspired by rural life, plays football, volunteers, and tends a small garden. We have a feeling all of that will find its way into his work here too.

We are excited to welcome Kouassi Armand as the new Beyco Officer Côte d’Ivoire, joining us with more than ten years of field experience across West Africa.

Armand’s background spans two worlds that rarely meet in one person: technical agroforestry and rural finance. He has worked as an agricultural client officer at Advans Côte d’Ivoire and as a field supervisor with ICRAF, building a practice around accompanying farmers, strengthening production systems, and promoting sustainable agriculture that delivers real economic and environmental results.

It is that appetite for initiative and new challenges, he tells us, that brought him to Progreso, and we are glad it did.

Welcome, Armand. We look forward to what we will build together.

We are happy to welcome Guy Laurent Boko as our newest team member, joining us from Côte d’Ivoire.

Guy brings over a decade of hands-on experience in cocoa agriculture, most recently with CEMOI Côte d’Ivoire, where he led the agronomic department and managed fresh cocoa fermentation centers in Sassandra and Abengourou. That combination of field expertise and operational leadership makes him a natural fit for the work we do alongside farming communities.

When we asked Guy what drew him to Progreso, his answer said it all: a deep passion for agricultural communities and a genuine belief in their potential. “I want to participate in this transformation,” he told us, “because I am passionate about agricultural communities and their well-being.“

Outside of work, Guy enjoys music, football, and exploring new places, and we sure hope the Progreso world gives him plenty of all three.

We are thrilled to have him on board and look forward to everything he will bring to this work.

The answer, for most, is: more than they currently have. Not more ambition. Not more cocoa. More structure, more documentation, and a clearer picture of their own business than most have ever been asked to produce.

That gap, between how cooperatives operate and what financial systems require, is what brought seven cooperatives together in late April for a two-day training on business planning and financial management. They came from across the archipelago: Jembrana and Tabanan in Bali, Ende in Flores, and Poso, Luwu Utara, Kolaka Timur, and Sikka in Sulawesi, all partners in TRACTION, a programme run by Rikolto Indonesia, Rainforest Alliance, and Kalimajari to improve livelihoods for small-scale cocoa farmers. Progreso was invited to deliver the training.

The cooperative model is not new to these communities. But the model only works if the people running it understand their numbers, and in many cases, that understanding is still being built.

Erwin Novianto, Progreso’s Programme Manager for Indonesia, opened with business planning: not documents filed in a drawer, but working tools. Supply chain maps showing where value is created and where it leaks. Seasonal calendars tracking when cash pressure peaks. Risk assessments that make the invisible visible. Two cooperatives presented draft plans to the group, which opened up a conversation no slide deck fully anticipates. Someone observed, plainly, that the financial system is not built for cooperatives like theirs. The room agreed.

That observation is worth sitting with. Loan processes are complex, collateral requirements unrealistic, and even when financing comes through, the timing or amount often misses what a cooperative actually needs during buying season. The barrier is not always the availability of money, it is the mismatch between when cooperatives need it and what lenders require to say yes.

Siske Annisa, Progreso’s Financial and Business Adviser, led the financial management sessions: how operations show up in financial records, basic accounting, how to read what the figures actually mean for decisions. One thing surfaced clearly: most cooperatives will need ongoing coaching to get their reporting and administration where it needs to be. The training gave them a foundation. The work continues.

Every cooperative left with the beginnings of a business plan and a working knowledge of accounting they did not have before. That might sound modest. But for groups navigating a system not designed for them, having the language and tools to make their case is not a small thing, it is where the possibility of a different relationship with finance begins.

As Progreso team, we are happy to welcome our new colleague, Siske Annisa, who joins us as Financial & Business Advisor – Indonesia. Siske brings over a decade of experience in finance and accounting within the non-profit sector.

Throughout her career, she have worked on strengthening financial systems, from restructuring accounting processes to improving audit outcomes, managing tax, and supporting partners with clear financial guidelines and hands-on technical assistance. Her work has consistently focused on helping organizations become more solid, transparent, and effective.

As she told us, her motivation to join Progreso is closely tied to this focus. “What led me to Progreso is that you are working directly with farmers for sustainable supply chains, which is something that has been my interest,” she explained.

In her new role, she is looking forward to working closely with cooperatives and contributing to their development. “I’m hoping I can collaborate and use my skills to help cooperatives become better organizations and support the investment side, while also learning along the way.”

Beyond her professional experience, she brings a few personal habits that might already feel familiar to all of us: handwritten notes during meetings to keep track of details, a steady supply of snacks at their desk (don´t we all!) and a passion for boxing outside of work.

We’re excited to have her on board and look forward to the perspective and experience she brings to the team.

We’re thrilled to welcome Christie Meza to the Progreso team! With over 18 years of experience in the coffee sector, Christie has worked with both multinational companies and local producer organizations, combining hands-on field experience with financial and strategic expertise. Her focus has always been clear: helping producer organizations grow sustainably, both environmentally and economically.

Christie comes from a family of coffee growers, making this sector part of her story, not just her career. She was drawn to Progreso by our holistic approach to development and is excited to support producer organizations while helping Progreso strengthen its role as a trusted partner in the Peruvian market. Outside of work, she has a love for dogs, especially Argentine Dogos, and her dog Lucas already thinks he’s the true Country Manager at home!

We’re excited to have Christie’s experience, energy, and passion on board as we continue working alongside producer organizations to create lasting impact.

We’re delighted to welcome Geovanny Martin Aguilar López to the Progreso team in Nicaragua! Geovanny joins us to support our partner organizations and help ensure our projects have meaningful, lasting impact.