Benefits From Tree Species’ Diversification in Cocoa Agroforests in the Centre Region of Cameroon

Folefack, Achille Jean Jaza; Eboutou, Lea Yvonne; Degrande, Ann; Moulende, Thérèse Fouda; Kamajou, François; Bauer, Siegfried

doi:10.18551/rjoas.2015-11.01

Cited by 7 publications

(5 citation statements)

References 3 publications

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“…Cocoa agroforestry has successfully been used to restore degraded cocoa landscapes and sustainably stabilise cocoa production in Cameroon [21][22][23] and Costa Rica [24,25] by (i) providing shade to young seedlings to improve their survival rates, and (ii) improving chemical and physical properties of soils, as well as enhancing biodiversity in soils. Past studies have shown that cocoa agroforestry can enhance the efficiency of cocoa farms through pests and diseases reduction [26,27], soil fertility improvement [28,29], and yield and profit increase [30,31]. Moreover, shaded cocoa plays an important role in promoting biodiversity conservation, landscape connectivity, and restoration of abandoned or degraded land [24,32].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Exploring Barriers to Agroforestry Adoption by Cocoa Farmers in South-Western Côte d’Ivoire

Kouassi

Bene

et al. 2021

Sustainability

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Agroforestry is part of the package of good agricultural practices (GAPs) referred to as a reference to basic environmental and operational conditions necessary for the safe, healthy, and sustainable production of cocoa. Furthermore, cocoa agroforestry is one of the most effective nature-based solutions to address global change including land degradation, nutrient depletion, climate change, biodiversity loss, food and nutrition insecurity, and rural poverty and current cocoa supply chain issues. This study was carried out in South-Western Côte d’Ivoire through a household survey to assess the willingness of cocoa farmers to adopt cocoa agroforestry, a key step towards achieving sustainability in the cocoa supply chain markedly threatened by all types of biophysical and socio-economic challenges. In total, 910 cocoa households were randomly selected and individually interviewed using a structured questionnaire. Findings revealed that from the overwhelming proportion of farmers practicing full-sun cocoa farming with little or no companion trees associated, 50.2 to 82.1% were willing to plant and to keep fewer than 20 trees per ha in their farms for more than 20 years after planting. The most preferred trees provide a range of ecosystem services, including timber and food production, as well as shade regulation. More than half of the interviewed households considered keeping in their trees in their plantations for more than 20 years subject to the existence of a formal contract to protect their rights and tree ownership. This opinion is significantly affected by age, gender, access to seedlings of companion trees and financial resources. A bold step forward towards transitioning to cocoa agroforestry and thereby agroecological intensification lies in (i) solving the issue of land tenure and tree ownership by raising awareness about the new forest code and, particularly, the understanding of cocoa agroforestry, (ii) highlighting the added value of trees in cocoa lands, and (iii) facilitating access to improved cocoa companion tree materials and incentives. Trends emerged from this six-year-old study about potential obstacles likely to impede the adoption of agroforestry by cocoa farmers meet the conclusions of several studies recently rolled out in the same region for a sustainable cocoa sector, thereby confirming that not only the relevance of this work but also its contribution to paving the way for the promotion of agroecological transition in cocoa farming.

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Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Exploring Barriers to Agroforestry Adoption by Cocoa Farmers in South-Western Côte d’Ivoire

Kouassi

Bene

et al. 2021

Sustainability

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“…Evidence from... to understand and are therefore very much favoured in programme evaluations. CBA, already used in different scientific works (Folefack et al, 2021 ;Folefack et al, 2015 ;Norton, 2013 ;Victor et al, 2010), allows us to analyse the effects of certification on cocoa farmers by measuring their performance against non-certified producers.…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Introduced to Cameroon since 1887 by the German colonial administration, cocoa is of considerable economic importance (Ngwang et Meliko, 2021). Indeed, in 2010, cocoa brought in more than 250 billion CFA francs to the state's revenues, or about 3 % of the gross domestic product (Folefack et al, 2015) and provides a living for an average of four hundred and fifty thousand farmers (Lescuyer et al, 2019). There are four major production basins in Cameroon, the South West with 50 % of national production, the Centre (35 %), the South (10 %), and the East (5 %) (Langrand, 2013).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Les systèmes de certification du cacao améliorent-ils les performances des producteurs ? Expérience de la région du Centre au Cameroun

Sadeu,

Mathe,

Nzie

2023

Tropicultura

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In agricultural value chains, in particular cocoa, environmental, and social standards are becoming increasingly important in meeting sustainability challenges. The main aim of this article is to examine the role of certification primarily on the yields and incomes of cocoa farmers in the Central Cameroon region. From June to July 2017, a survey of certified and non-certified cocoa producers was conducted in the districts of Ngoumou and Mbangassina. At the end of the survey, a total sample of 114 certified and non-certified producers was obtained. Using the cost-benefit analysis, in this preliminary phase of the certification process, the results show that there is no significant difference in costs between certified and non-certified producers for each of the districts. There is also no price difference between certified and non-certified cocoa and the payment of the certification premium is not systematically distributed. However, the profit analysis shows on average significantly higher yields and profits for certified producers. Nevertheless, this increase in profits would mainly be due to the implementation of good agricultural practices rather than the certification itself. Additionally, the exploration of on farm income shows that cocoa-based households remain on average below the poverty line. One of the long-term challenges for the cocoa sector in Cameroon is to combine the government's objective of increasing production with that of improving quality. To this end, the advantages of the predominantly agroforestry systems present in Cameroon should be exploited to produce a critical mass of quality and sustainable cocoa that would allow a significant increase in producer prices.

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“…Although full-sun cocoa is the widespread cocoa farming practice, western and eastern cocoa belts are becoming favorable to the adoption of cocoa agroforestry due to erratic rainfall and the promotion of good agricultural practices (GAP) from extension services. Some farmers are conducting agroforestry-led farming by interplanting trees in cocoa plantations with the bene t of increasing yields (Owusu and Frimpong 2014; Folefack et al 2015), improving soil fertility (Isaac et al 2007), reducing pests and diseases including cocoa swollen shoot virus disease (CSSVD) (Andres et al 2018) and diversifying incomes .…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Drivers of cocoa agroforestry adoption by smallholder farmers around the Taï National Park in southwestern Côte d’Ivoire

Kouassi

Diby

Konan³

et al. 2023

Preprint

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Forest encroachments in protected areas leading to severe biodiversity loss are common in Côte d’Ivoire for the last few decades mainly due to agricultural expansion. Several initiatives to promote sustainable agriculture practices are ongoing in the vicinity of these protected forests to reverse the anthropogenic pressure and its consequences. This study was undertaken to assess selected agricultural practices and the willingness of the cocoa farmers to adopt agroforestry around the Taï National Park in Southwest Côte d’Ivoire. A structured questionnaire was administrated to 323 cocoa farmers to understand their current practices and perceptions of cocoa agroforestry. Our results showed that 95% of farmers grow unimproved cocoa varieties with an average yield of 376 ± 36 kg/ha per year. In terms of agricultural practices, more than 91% of farmers applied pesticides, 86% use agroforestry practices as part of their farming systems, while 82% use pruning techniques and 27% applied fertilizers. We also found that most farmers (54%) are willing to adopt improved agroforestry practices or plant more trees in their cocoa plantations. The willingness of these farmers to practice cocoa agroforestry is influenced by gender, the length of residency and the number of cultivated cash crops. Our findings can be used as entry points to make good use of strong community knowledge and take advantage of existing knowledge to strengthen the take-up of good agricultural practices and generate on-the-ground sustainable impacts.

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Benefits From Tree Species’ Diversification in Cocoa Agroforests in the Centre Region of Cameroon

Cited by 7 publications

References 3 publications

Exploring Barriers to Agroforestry Adoption by Cocoa Farmers in South-Western Côte d’Ivoire

Exploring Barriers to Agroforestry Adoption by Cocoa Farmers in South-Western Côte d’Ivoire

Les systèmes de certification du cacao améliorent-ils les performances des producteurs ? Expérience de la région du Centre au Cameroun

Drivers of cocoa agroforestry adoption by smallholder farmers around the Taï National Park in southwestern Côte d’Ivoire

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