Rebuilding Tree Cover in Deforested Cocoa Landscapes in Côte d’Ivoire: Factors Affecting the Choice of Species Planted

Abstract

Intensive cocoa production in Côte d’Ivoire, the world’s leading cocoa producer, has grown at the expense of forest cover. To reverse this trend, the country has adopted a “zero deforestation” agricultural policy and committed to rehabilitating its forest cover through the planting of high-value tree species in cocoa landscapes using a participatory approach. However, little is known regarding the factors influencing farmers’ introduction of high-value tree species to cocoa landscapes. We tested the hypothesis that ten previously reported factors to influence agroforestry system adoption to predict the number and choice of tree species that farmers introduce to cocoa farms. We interviewed 683 households in the cocoa-producing zone of Côte d’Ivoire and counted tree species on their cocoa farms. On average, two tree species were recorded per surveyed farm. Generalized Poisson regression models revealed that, in the cocoa production area, experience in tree planting and expected benefits, including income and food, influence tree species introduction through planting or “retention” when clearing land for cocoa establishment. The age of the farmer also influenced (p = 0.017) farmers’ tree species planting on cocoa farms. Fewer tree species were introduced into current intensive cocoa-production areas than in “old cocoa-loops” and forested areas. The number of tree species introduced to cocoa farms increased with expected benefits and experience in tree planting. The number of planted tree species also increased with farmers’ age. Tree species were mostly selected for the provision of shade to cocoa, production of useful tree products (38%), and income from the sale of these products (7%). Fruit tree species were the most planted, while timber tree species were mostly spared when clearing land for cocoa production.

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

“…Farmers who have already been exposed to agroforestry are aware of the contribution of tree species to cocoa production and livelihoods' improvement, as well as the workload that the maintenance of these trees could generate. This result confirmed the recent observation by Atangana et al [35] that outlined that experience in tree planting and expected benefits significantly affected tree adoption in Côte d'Ivoire. It is therefore important to assess the economic and environmental contribution of cocoa agroforestry systems to household livelihood in the short and long term, based on the on-farm tree introduction period.…”

“…In addition, tree species retained by farmers in their cocoa farms were mainly composed of exotic and local fruit tree species, namely Persea americana, Mangifera indica and Citrus sp., confirming previous findings highlighting that fruit tree species were the major tree species in cocoa landscapes [18,29,35]. These species help cocoa farmers diversify their source of income and ensure their food security as fruits are either directly consumed or sold to local traders and farmers during the lean season [64,65].…”

“…On the other hand, our results revealed that most of the cocoa growers were keen to maintain about 8 tree individuals per hectare in their farms, a value above the range between 2.0 ± 1.1 [35] and 9.6 ± 4.6 [34] trees per farm. Findings in other supplying countries such as Ghana revealed 2.4 to 5.10 ± 0.38 tree individuals per farm [62,63].…”

“…Some farmers planned to bring more trees on their farms for the expected benefits of shade trees to cocoa yields, additional income and pest and disease pressure management [33,34]. Furthermore, several initiatives and projects, including payments for ecosystem services and certification schemes, have been promoted to manage cocoa under mild to heavy shade in the prospect to reverse deforestation and restore forest cover [35].…”

Modelling greenhouse gas emissions of cacao production in the Republic of Côte d’Ivoire

“…Planting trees on farms can be considered strategic management as it has long term effects and changes a farm's characteristic from full sun to agroforestry. Both Dumont et al ( 2014) and Atangana et al (2021) found a rich diversity of trees in cacao fields in Co ˆte d'Ivoire. Amongst most cited advantages were the protection of cacao trees from heat stress, especially in the dry season, and soil fertility improvement.…”