# Towards a hybridization of the cocoa sector governance in Cameroon to meet economic and environmental sustainability

Guillaume Lescuyer

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## To cite this version:

Guillaume Lescuyer. Towards a hybridization of the cocoa sector governance in Cameroon to meet economic and environmental sustainability. FTA 2020 Science Conference: Forests, trees and agro-forestry science for transformational change, Sep 2020, Bogor, Indonesia. pp.11-11. hal-05177164

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Submitted on 22 Jul 2025

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FTA
Science
Conference

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RESEARCH
PROGRAM ON
Forests, Trees and
Agroforestry

FTA 2020 Science Conference

Forests, trees and agroforestry
science for transformational change

14-18 | 21-25

September 2020

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Book of Abstracts

Corrigendum of 10.03.2021
FTA 2020 Science Conference

Forests, trees and agroforestry
science for transformational change

14-18 | 21-25

September 2020

Book of Abstracts
Book of Abstracts

© 2020 The CGIAR Research Program on Forests, Trees and Agroforestry (FTA)

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Content in this publication is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International (CC BY 4.0), http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/

DOI: 10.17528/cifor/007925

Gitz V, Meybeck A, Ricci F, Belcher B, Brady MA, Coccia F, Elias M, Jamnadass R, Kettle C, Larson A, Li Y, Louman B, Martius C, Minang P, Sinclair F, Sist P, Somarriba E. (Editors). 2020. *Book of Abstracts: FTA 2020 Science Conference - Forests, trees and agroforestry science for transformational change*. 14–18 | 21–25, September 2020. Bogor, Indonesia: The CGIAR Research Program on Forests, Trees and Agroforestry (FTA).

CGIAR Research Program on Forests, Trees and Agroforestry
CIFOR Headquarters
Jalan CIFOR
Situ Gede, Sindang Barang
Bogor Barat 16115
Indonesia

T +62-251-8622-622
E cgiarforestsandtrees@cgiar.org

foreststreesagroforestry.org

We would like to thank all funding partners who supported this research through their contributions to the CGIAR Fund. For a full list of the 'CGIAR Fund' funding partners please see: http://www.cgiar.org/our-funders/

Any views expressed in this publication are those of the authors. They do not necessarily represent the views of The CGIAR Research Program on Forests, Trees and Agroforestry (FTA), the editors, the authors' institutions, the financial sponsors or the reviewers.
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**AUTHORS**
Guillaume Lescuyer†‡

**E-MAIL ADDRESS OF PRESENTER**
lescuyer@cirad.fr

**ORGANIZATIONS**
† CIRAD Forêts & Sociétés, Montpellier, France
‡ CIFOR VFI, Bogor, Indonesia

# Towards a hybridization of the cocoa sector governance in Cameroon to meet economic and environmental sustainability

The cocoa sector is facing new demands, mainly from European markets, to demonstrate the legality of its production, its sustainability and the neutrality of its impact on tropical forest. In Cameroon, despite the importance of this sector for the national economy, the deregulation of the sector over the last 25 years has not allowed the state to face these three challenges. There is currently no precise definition of what legal cocoa is. A national standard for sustainable cocoa is being adopted, but it is not very binding. And the desire to reduce the footprint of cocoa production on the forest and to produce cocoa without deforestation is a more recent concern, which is not yet reflected in public policy.

In such a context, the certification of cocoa according to private standards can be a successful approach to facilitate the production of legal, sustainable and deforestation-free cocoa. We tested this hypothesis by studying the impact of cocoa certification (UTZ-Rainforest Alliance) on the livelihoods of small-scale farmers (owning a cocoa plantation of between 0.5 ha and 5 ha), who contribute to almost 90% of Cameroon's production. Three production systems for smallholder cocoa farmers were compared: (1) shaded cocoa without certification; (2) shaded cocoa with certification; (3) cocoa on grasslands with certification.

Data collection was done through a review of scientific and technical documentation as well as quantitative and qualitative interviews with 63 farmers in the Central, South, South-West and Coastal regions between March and May 2019. This information was used to develop the operating accounts of these agents, which were then synthesized for the three stereotypes of producers:

1. Non-certified small producers have a net profit rate of 4% and a value added of 471,984 CFA francs per tonne. This mode of cocoa production is a low-profit-making activity and weakened by an increase in production costs, which is not compensated by an improvement in turnover.

2. Producers in shaded agroforests and engaged in certification receive support of around 80,000 CFA francs per year, which improves their financial performance. Their net profit rate is 24%. The added value is estimated at 486,102 CFA francs/tonne.

3. The farmers on grasslands and involved in certification have production costs that are much higher than those of cocoa farmers in the forest. This type of cocoa production is more capitalist since access to certain factors of production such as land or labor is based on market relations. The monetarization of certain costs weighs on the rate of net profit, which rises to 15%, but reinforces the value added, which stands at 660,544 CFA francs per tonne.

Certification therefore presents an important advantage for smallholders by offering a higher purchase price for cocoa and above all by improving production through targeted support in terms of training, equipment and inputs. Overall, it has replaced the state in providing actual support to small producers. In the short term, the desire to commit the sector to legal and sustainable production requires progress towards private certification. However, this approach still has major shortcomings, in terms of traceability or creating a two-tier production system in Cameroon's rural economies. There is an opportunity to think about new forms of governance where the state focuses on certain sovereign functions while other private actors are delegated certain tasks for which they have demonstrated their effectiveness.

**KEYWORDS**
Certification, value chain, deforestation

**REFERENCES**

Gockowski J, Tchatat M, Dondjang JP, Hietet G and Fouda T. 2010. An empirical analysis of the biodiversity and economic returns to cocoa agroforests in southern Cameroon. *Journal of Sustainable Forestry* 29:638–70. https://doi.org/10.1080/10549811003739486

Jagoret P, Michel-Dounias I, Snoeck D, Todem Ngnogué H and Malézieux E. 2012. Afforestation of savannah with cocoa agroforestry systems: a small-farmer innovation in central Cameroon. *Agroforestry Systems* 86(3):493–504. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10457-012-9513-9

Jagoret P, Snoeck D, Bouambi E, Todem Ngnogue H, Nyassé S and Saj S. 2017. Rehabilitation practices that shape cocoa agroforestry systems in Central Cameroon: Key management strategies for long-term exploitation. *Agroforestry Systems* 92(5):1185–99.
https://doi.org/10.1007/s10457-016-0055-4

Ngoucheme R. 2018. *Les effets de la certification sur la performance des systèmes agroforestiers à base de cacao au Cameroun*. [Thèse en sciences économiques]. Dschang, Cameroun: Université de Dschang, Laboratoire de Recherche en Economie Fondamentale et Appliquée.