How to improve soil health in West Africa?
West African farmers are facing chronic soil fertility decline. Their vulnerability is increasing in an increasingly complex context: growing demand for agricultural products, geopolitical instability, climate change, etc. What concrete solutions can be disseminated to improve the resilience of West African forest-based agriculture? The FARM Foundation traveled to Côte d'Ivoire to meet with several stakeholders in the field.
Soil health, human health: the drivers of a change in practices
The fertility of forest soils was at the heart of the discussions of the seminar organized in Ivory Coast last May, at the initiative of "4 per 1000", the Ministry of State for Agriculture and Rural Development of Côte d'Ivoire and CIRAD. The FARM Foundation participated in this seminar and was able to meet market gardeners as well as cocoa and banana producers on this occasion.
In the coastal countries of West Africa, forest export crops—cocoa, coffee, rubber, and palm—play a key economic and social role today. Cocoa in Côte d'Ivoire is the most emblematic example. The history of this sector is linked to a significant immigration process, and for decades it has played a leading role in export revenues.[1]Its development – like that of other forest crops – was largely built on the cultivation of natural forests.[2] and on the richness of the soil resulting from this deforestation. The area of forests in Côte d'Ivoire has thus declined by 80% since 1955[3].
But without maintaining the fertility of forest soils, it diminishes over time. This natural decline in soil fertility results in greater vulnerability to climatic hazards and disease and, consequently, more unpredictable yields for producers. Farmers try to compensate for this, with varying degrees of success, by applying ever-increasing amounts of fertilizer. Even though West African producers use 8 times less nitrogen fertilizer than the world average[4], the doses applied increase[5] to try to maintain yields, which raises questions about the future of these crops and the economic sustainability of the farms, but also the environmental one.
Furthermore, agriculture practiced on these soils is often intensive and specialized around a few species grown in monoculture. These cultivation methods deplete the soil and favor competing plants and pests that take advantage of these homogeneous environments to develop. To deal with this, producers are increasingly using chemical inputs, particularly pesticides.
Between maintaining fertility with synthetic fertilizers and fighting against aggressors with pesticides, producers of these forest crops find themselves trapped in a vicious circle that can be very detrimental economically for their farms. They are increasingly dependent inputs whose prices and availability fluctuate greatly, without however halting the downward trend in harvests.
Furthermore, rural populations are increasingly feeling the effects of these chemicals on their health and the environment. For Alida N'Takpe, cocoa producer and president of the RASSO cooperative in Agboville, Ivory Coast, " The primary motivation that drives producers to change their agricultural practices is the impact of chemicals on our own health. ». According to a study carried out in Yamoussoukro[6] with market gardeners, 60% of the producers surveyed said they were contaminated by pesticides. They use plant protection products that are sometimes not suitable for food crops, under conditions of use that constitute a real health and environmental risk.[7].
Substitute chemicals or transform the production system
Reducing the use of phytosanitary products and replacing them with other natural processes is an area of work to improve soil health and restore its fertility sustainably.
To succeed in doing without phytosanitary products, the producers' cooperative of SCEB cocoa, in Ivory Coast, has created a unit for the production of organic inputs for its 300 members. Installed in 2020, this The organic fertilizer and pesticide factory uses local ingredients from the microflora present in forest soil. In fact, humus naturally contains microorganisms that help trees grow and defend themselves.
The feedback from Georges Nguessan, who coordinates the development of this innovation within the cooperative, is positive. “A well-nourished cocoa tree is healthy and knows how to defend itself much better. We see that the trees are more vigorous, especially in times of drought. We also see that our cocoa trees live longer.” ".
Implementing such a system requires advanced technical skills and support for producers. To achieve this, the cooperative was able to count on the support of the Equité program, co-led by local teams from AVSF and Commerce Equitable France. Equité has helped professionalize the manufacturing of bio-inputs and contribute to the dissemination of knowledge among producer organizations in Côte d'Ivoire.
Other practices can also be used by producers at the production system level. Lucie Temgoua, a professor at the University of Dschang in Cameroon, emphasized the environmental and economic benefits of agroforestry at the Abidjan seminar. She noted that monoculture weakens and impoverishes the soil. In these contexts, the soil stores up to 4 times less carbon than a natural forest[8]The principle of agroforestry is to reintroduce a diversity of trees into a production plot to recreate a complex forest ecosystem, which helps restore carbon stocks in the soil. Agroforestry is a combination, on the same plot, of crops (cocoa, coffee) and larger trees known as service trees. Their presence benefits the ecosystem, particularly in terms of shade and soil fertility. Overall, crops are more resistant to drought and biological control is encouraged. They can also provide additional benefits to the farmer through the use of other trees for food production, medicinal purposes, or as a source of firewood.
During the international seminar, there Camayé cooperative in Ivory Coast shared his experience of growing cocoa in agroforestry. Supported by the French NGO AVSF, she quickly measured the benefits of a multi-functional system, based on the presence of large trees associated with cocoa trees.
Successful agroforestry farming depends on two fundamental elements: the choice of associated species and planting density. Service trees must be chosen to provide socio-economic benefits. Producers from the Camayé cooperative have therefore planted other fruit tree species in their cocoa plantations to provide an additional source of income.
Then there is the question of planting density. A balance must be found between crops and service trees, which can maintain a suitable yield over the long term. According to studies conducted by CIRAD, for cocoa cultivation in Cameroon[9] a density of 136 service trees per hectare of cocoa plantation would be the best compromise between cocoa yield and positive effects on the environment. Under these conditions, one can find almost as many service trees as cocoa trees on the plot, for a cocoa yield similar to that of a monoculture.
Thus, the producers of the Camayé cooperative have demonstrated the robustness of an economic model based on agroforestry, thanks to cocoa yields comparable to those of conventional farming and diversified sources of income all year round.
A transformation of agricultural practices under four conditions
Make it profitable
This change in agricultural practices cannot come at the expense of producer income. While producers are receptive to the "health" argument, many are reluctant to change their habits for fear of higher production costs. According to Fulbert Dago, Deputy Director of AVSF in Côte d'Ivoire, the cost of manual labor is preventing producers from adopting these new, more labor-intensive practices.
Indeed, the ease of using pesticides is contrasted with an increase in weeding work, often manual in the case of very little mechanized agriculture. Similarly, this change in practice implies more time spent on monitoring plant by plant and targeted curative actions.
For Sébastien de Ricaud, Director of Operations at SCB (the Ivorian subsidiary of the Compagnie Fruitière group committed to an agroecological transition policy), the use of bio-inputs must be combined with precision farming technologies that require new skills. He told us during a visit to a banana plantation that This alternative to chemical treatments can ultimately cost 5 times more.
Organize
Alida N'Takpe (RASSO Cooperative) told us that one of the keys to successfully achieving these transformations lies in the collective organization of producers. According to her, " Producers join cooperatives because they find solutions to better organize themselves, in addition to technical support, training and product promotion. ". His cocoa cooperative has grown from 100 to over 1,600 members in the space of 8 years. Organizing producers into groups provides a collective response to the challenge of labor needs. Furthermore, in areas often affected by rural exodus, the development of more labor-intensive production systems can also present an employment opportunity.
The grouping and organization of producers into cooperatives is increasingly visible in Ivory Coast, which today has more than 2,000 cooperatives, including 90 % in the cocoa and coffee sectors.
To accompany
Although this production system may actually be profitable for the producer in the long term, he must nevertheless assume a high risk during the first few years. The transition therefore requires training and technical support efforts. adapted to the specific conditions of each plot.
Finance
But how can farmers finance a plantation project that requires between one and four years of revenue, or equipment for the production of natural inputs? And how can yield risks be managed in the first few years before being able to benefit from the ecosystem services linked to the presence of large trees?
For producers or their cooperatives, solutions for financing the initial investment and carrying the associated risk remain little known. "In addition to the costs associated with replanting (purchasing trees), farmers take risks by changing their practices. They need to protect themselves. Tools exist for this, such as improving water management with irrigation. But we need easier access to credit.", explains Joséphine Francis, producer in Liberia and Vice-President of the Network of Farmers' Organizations and Producers of West Africa (ROPPA).
THE producer organizations are an essential link in the financing chain for considering large-scale deployment of agroforestry practices. Cooperatives, such as those supported by AVSF, are experimenting with loans to farmers over 1 to 4 years, financed by funds or microfinance institutions.
THE industry players – processors, manufacturers, distributors – also have a role to play through the promotion of products, for example by means of a multi-year contract and a minimum price guaranteed to the producer. Fair trade channels are another effective lever which enabled the 300 producers of the SCEB cooperative to adopt bio-inputs and develop agroforestry.
One of the solutions presented by industry players at the Abidjan seminar consists of relying on the mechanisms of the sale of carbon credits to finance projects for the rehabilitation of forested agricultural plots. This raises very high expectations from producers but also many questions about the conditions and methods of their implementation.
In conclusion
Thus, faced with the challenge of soil fertility and protection, several types of solutions exist based on the substitution of techniques too harmful to the health of populations or the environment, or on agroforestry. Scaling up these solutions in West Africa, however, requires essential collective work between decision-makers, producers, researchers and stakeholders in the sectors. But African agriculture is among those Who benefit from the least public support. A strengthening public policies in agriculture is necessary to support stakeholders in the sectors, and first and foremost producers, in this transition. In order for them to be coherent at the local and regional levels, the foundations of these government actions can be laid through spaces of public/private and interdisciplinary collaboration. It is under these conditions that they can be deployed without contradictions among producers and stakeholders in the sectors.
[1] Ruf. 2020. At the heart of the cocoa cycles and conflicts in West Africa, the Ivory Coast, Ghana and Burkina Faso triangle.
[2] The FAO defines natural forests as those composed solely of native trees that have not been planted by humans. In other words, these forests exclude plantations.
[5] Nitrogen fertilizer use in West Africa increased by +211% between 2002 and 2021 – FAOSTAT
[6] Tiembre et al. 2016. Environmental and health impact of pesticide use in urban and peri-urban market gardening in the Yamoussoukro area, Ivory Coast.
[7] Ibid.
[8] See the study carried out by the IRD and the FAO, notably in Benin: Chevallier et al. 2020. Soil Carbon in Africa. Impacts of Land Use and Agricultural Practices.
[9] Jagoret et al. 2020. Agroforestry cocoa farming in Africa: the art of reconciling sustainable production and ecological services.
