GAIA is not simply a "trading house": wherever possible, we do our best to get involved with local suppliers and assist them in jointly grow a stronger business. At GAIA we believe that our long term success depends heavily on the people working with us and on the creation of a positive local environment. Our goal is not simply to take away from West Africa, in order to benefit the owners of the company, but also make an effort and give back some of our time, knowledge and, on occasions, funding to make a contribution to progress and development in the countries where we operate.

We aim to be an employer of choice and do our best to create opportunities for long-term employment and professional training, in particular with best health and safety practices.

We also expect our suppliers to maintain the highest level of social and environmental standards and this criteria plays a strong part in our selection process who we decide to work with. In particular, our suppliers have to provide a safe working environment to their employees.