The future of the world cocoa economy depends on the availability of genetic diversity and the sustainable use of this broad genetic base to breed improved varieties. Decreasing cacao genetic diversity (in situ, on-farm and conserved in collections) is a serious problem and all its many causes need to be urgently addressed: the destruction of the Amazonian rainforests, changing patterns of land use, the spread of pests and diseases, sudden changes in climate, and threats from natural disasters and extreme weather. These factors are resulting in an irreversible loss of the cacao genetic diversity so essential for farmers, breeders, and consumers. Most of the countries involved in the improvement and production of cacao are highly dependent on genes and varieties characterized and conserved in other countries and regions. Effective management of cacao genetic resources can therefore only be carried out through international collaboration. A considerable portion of the global cacao diversity is in situ, in farmers' fields and held in genebanks around the world, including two international collections maintained at the Cocoa Research Centre of the University of the West Indies (CRC/UWI), Trinidad and Tobago, and at the Centro Agronómico Tropical de Investigación y Enseñanza (CATIE), Costa Rica. Unfortunately, much of the genetic resources maintained in national collections is under-used or at risk, and funding remains insufficient and unstable. The vision of the Global Strategy for the Conservation and Use of Cacao Genetic Resources is to improve the livelihoods of the 5-6 million farmers in developing countries across tropical Africa, Asia and Latin America and the 40-50 million people who depend upon cocoa for their livelihoods. The specific goal is to optimize the conservation and maximize the use of cacao genetic resources as the foundation of a sustainable cocoa economy. This it does by bringing together national and international players in public and private sect