72 youth made climbing their profession
72 of the 220 trained youth — a 33% conversion rate — adopted coconut climbing as their primary livelihood, self-employed with no capital beyond the climbing device (~₹2,000–5,000).
Training on coconut climbing
A skill-based livelihood programme designed by Coodu Trust for rural youth in Tamil Nadu — professional palm climbing with modern devices, with TNAU and the Coconut Development Board as technology partners.
220
Rural youth trained
7
Training programmes
72
Now professional climbers
33%
Employment conversion rate
The project
What this project set out to do
Project mission
Address the critical shortage of skilled labour for coconut palm cleaning and harvesting in Tamil Nadu by training rural youth in professional palm climbing using modern climbing devices — creating a high-income livelihood that tackles one of the biggest constraints in the coconut farming sector.
Designed and implemented by Coodu Trust in Tamil Nadu during 2013–2014, the programme trained 220 rural youth through 7 training programmes, each tailored for 5 days of intensive, hands-on practice. Participants were unemployed and underemployed rural youth, members of coconut farming communities and aspiring self-employed youth.
Trainees learned two complementary modern climbing devices — one designed by the Tamil Nadu Agricultural University (TNAU) and another popularised by the Coconut Development Board (CDB), a statutory body under the Ministry of Agriculture & Farmers Welfare, Government of India. The devices enable safe, efficient climbing without the strain and risk of traditional barefoot climbing, letting a skilled climber service ~40–50 trees a day.
The context was urgent: the area under coconut cultivation was diminishing and productivity declining in Tamil Nadu due to drought, fluctuating rainfall and a severe skilled-labour shortage for palm cleaning and nut harvesting. Trained climbers become self-employed with zero capital investment beyond the climbing device itself.
- Safe climbing techniques
- Modern climbing devices
- Youth self-employment
- Coconut farm services
Why this work matters
The challenge on the ground — and our answer
The challenge
No skilled hands to climb the palms
Coconut cultivation in Tamil Nadu was shrinking and productivity declining — drought, fluctuating rainfall and a severe shortage of skilled labour for palm cleaning and nut harvesting left farmers unable to maintain their trees.
Our response
220 youth trained as professional climbers
Seven 5-day training programmes combined classroom instruction on safety, tree biology and equipment handling with extensive practice on actual coconut palms — covering crown cleaning, nut harvesting and tree health assessment.
The challenge
Barefoot climbing: strain, risk, few takers
Traditional barefoot climbing carries physical strain and risk — leaving unemployed and underemployed rural youth without a safe, viable path into this in-demand trade.
Our response
Modern devices that turn climbing into a career
Training on the TNAU and CDB climbing devices made climbing safe and efficient — 72 trained youth adopted it as their primary profession, earning up to ₹750 per day at ₹15–20 per tree, with the device (~₹2,000–5,000) as the only capital required.
At a glance
The essentials
- Scheme
- Trust initiativeSkill-based livelihood programme designed by Coodu Trust; no external funder
- Period
- 2013–20147 training programmes, each of 5 days duration
- Coverage
- Tamil NaduCoconut farming areas facing a severe skilled-labour shortage
- Beneficiaries
- 220 rural youthUnemployed/underemployed youth, coconut farming communities & aspiring self-employed youth; 72 now climb professionally
- Technology partners
- TNAU & CDBTNAU designed one climbing device; the CDB — a statutory body under the Ministry of Agriculture & Farmers Welfare — popularised the other
- Part of
- Horticulture & diversified farmingWithin Coodu Trust's sustainable agriculture portfolio
Outcomes
What the project changed
Up to ₹750 a day in earnings
Charging ₹15–20 per tree, trained climbers earn up to ₹750 per day — roughly ₹18,750 a month over 25 working days, with annual income potential of ~₹2,25,000.
Year-round demand, sector-wide gains
Coconuts are harvested every 45–60 days, so each climber can service 100+ farming households year-round — regular harvesting lifts tree productivity and farmer income, and keeps youth working in their own communities.
Get involved
Support skill-based livelihoods
Help us train more rural youth in the skills the farm economy urgently needs — turning a five-day training and a simple device into a year-round livelihood.