The project aims to close the gap to a living income for the farmers of the cooperative of Yeyasso in Côte d’Ivoire by contributing to a sustainable cocoa production, diversifying activities and professionalizing the farmer organization. Through this pilot project, producers and cooperative staff will learn how to upgrade their techniques for a most viable and sustainable cocoa and will be inclined towards replicating the model on a bigger scale.
Living Income
The Project will focus on the following living income drivers.
The project works on productivity, diversification and quality improvement with a small pilot group of farmers.
The project will convert part of the cocoa production to organic production. The conversion of organic will be paired with intensive training on good agricultural practices (pruning, organic composting, etc.) to compensate for reduced production in the first years of the transition by using no chemical fertilizers. The use of compost, leguminous trees, cattle & poultry manure will improve soil condition and fertility. The project also aims to increase the quality of the farmers’ cocoa beans by improving fermentation processes. These activities combined will lead to a quality and organic premium on top of the Fairtrade premium, considerably increasing the farmers’ income.
Furthermore, The project will encourage the diversification of activities in order to increase incomes: this will happen through the construction of sustainable small-scale poultry farms for the production of food and organic fertilizers. The project will also promote crop diversification and cultivation by women.
To provide the organizations with the required knowledge and all tools for better access to the markets, the project will coach farmers in financial and business management . The coaching will happen via the customized participatory coaching itinerary developed by Enabel. The project will increase access to finance for farmers by installing loans from banks that are independent from exporters and by installing mobile payment systems.
Women & Youth Empowerment
The project aims to empower women by including them in innovative activities of diversification such as poultry farming. In addition, several women within the project will be included in the Women School of Leadership, an innovative project by Fairtrade International that brings women cocoa farmers together for a year of training and mentorship on topics of human rights and gender equality, as well as financial management, negotiation, and income diversification project development.
Youth in this project will be empowered through the “Young farmers” program that was initiated by Yeyasso. The objective of the program is to give a local job to the youth living in the villages. The producers can call the young farmers when they have work to do. It is a development incentive and a way to tackle rural exodus.
Deforestation & Biodiversity
The project follows the reasoning the problematic of deforestation is strongly linked with the poverty problematic. Therefore, the revenue increase, the better agricultural practices, and the agroforestry and the organic switch will lead to reducing deforestation. The conversion of the area into organic production will also contribute to biodiversity, create a microclimate and restore specific fauna that provides ecosystem services in cocoa cultivation.
Update on progress 2022-2023
Progress
In 2023 the organic certification certificate was issued for 165 farmers of the Yeyasso cooperative. Yields fell by only 1% thanks to inputs funded by the project and by Yeyasso (organic fertilizer) as well as to good agricultural practices that were closely monitored throughout the year. Furthermore, the quality of the cocoa beans has increased considerably thanks to the set-up of a fermentation center and adapted drying infrastructure. An achievement under the diversification activity was the operationalization of the henhouse.
Lastly, the project has made great steps in professionalizing the Yeyasso cooperative through the coaching on finance and business management led by Enabel. As such, the cooperative has developed a communication plan with a slogan, website and leaflets. Currently, the coaching is focusing on the entry of the cooperative in the organic market (identification of potential buyers, preparation of organic fairs,…).
Learnings
The diversification of labels, programs and buyers is essential to withstand the fluctuations that can arise in the cocoa market. Niche markets with high added value are a real avenue of resilience. Therefore, the coaching established the importance for Yeyasso to confirm its volumes of certified cocoa: Fairtrade (Saco/Galler), RA (Ocean/Ferrero & Olam), Mondelez (Saco/Barry Callebaut).
In 2022, Galler together with Fairtrade, Enabel and Yeyasso analyzed the income gap of 350 cocoa farmers of the Yeyasso cooperative, including farmers included in the project. More information on this living income study can be found here.
Next steps
In the coming period, the project will continue with the implementation of Good Agricultural Practices (GAP) through pruning, weeding and pest management. Furthermore, the focus will be on further improving cocoa quality and ensuring markets for poultry.
Project partners
