In response to the ageing of the cocoa orchard and the disappearance of forest cover in Côte d’Ivoire, the “forest-friendly cocoa” (CAF) pilot project aims to promote sustainable cocoa farming that reconciles the preservation of natural and forest resources with improved living conditions for cocoa producers.
Following a call for tenders for the selection of an independent observer launched by the FADCI (Filières Agricoles Durables de Côte d’Ivoire) program coordination unit, AVSF has been entrusted with the monitoring and evaluation of the indicators used to measure changes in the CAF project’s performance, for a five-year period from October 2018 to September 2023.
The independent observer’s main tasks are to evaluate and report on three objective indicators:
1. At least 25% of the cocoa plantations supported have a yield of 1000 kg/ha (compared with 350 kg/ha on average at present).
2. Annual income increased by 30% for 80% of cocoa farmers coached by the project.
3. 100% of the cocoa purchased by Cémoi as part of the project is traceable from the farmer to the processing plant.
For AVSF, this project represents an opportunity to forge links with various players in the cocoa industry in Côte d’Ivoire, and to enrich its knowledge of agroforestry techniques in cocoa farming, which it is promoting as part of other projects in West Africa (Côte d’Ivoire and Togo in particular).
