Africa’s achievement of the first United Nations’ Millennium Development Goal (MDG), eradicate extreme poverty and hunger, requires rural growth and development. Agriculture is a major source of livelihood for rural Africans and constitutes a significant percentage of exports, but the sector has not reached its full potential. Productivity and quality improvements are major drivers of rural income and sector growth, but, adoption of productivity and quality-enhancing technologies is often limited by education and access to information. Achievement of the second MDG, universal primary education, and the implied next step of retaining those students through secondary school, can provide a strong foundation for bridging this technology gap. However, it will take several generations before the benefits of increased educational levels will be realized. Cocoa is a vital commodity to many economies in West Africa, especially the world’s leading producers of Cote d’Ivoire and Ghana. Unique public-private partnerships between U.S. government agencies, the chocolate industry, and African governments are strengthening primary and secondary education in such a way as to support the achievement of the first MDG in cocoa-growing communities. At the same time, these partnerships are supporting education opportunities for youth and adults in cocoa-growing communities who are no longer in school. This approach presents a valuable model that may be adapted and replicated in other countries and other sectors.