Agriculture remains a major contributor to Ghana’s economic development, accounting for a major portion of livelihoods in rural communities and employing about 45.3% of the country’s population and contributing enormously to the Gross Domestic Product. Although Ghana excels in the production of many crops including rubber, oil palm and cashew, Cocoa (Theobroma cacao) continues to be the leading tree crop cultivated in Ghana. Ghana produces approximately 800,000 metric tons of cocoa annually and support an estimated number of 800,000 smallholder farmers and their families. Cocoa accounts for 5-7% of Ghana’s GDP annually and contributed about $533million USD to Ghana’s GDP in 2021. Ghana is the world’s second producer of cocoa, producing about 20% of the world’s total output. In most households involved in cocoa production, about 67% of the household income comes from cocoa production. Smallholder farmers, (25-30% being women) dominate Ghana’s cocoa production with an average farm size of 2 hectares per household.
Although Ghana’s cocoa recorded impressive performance between 2000 and 2008, the sector now faces several challenges the key ones being i) low and declining productivity (due to tree ageing, disease and pest pressure, and declining soil fertility due to bad production practices) ii) Encroachment on natural forests caused by shifting cultivation in response to declining soil fertility, limited use of inputs, continuous reduction in land suitable for cocoa cultivation, and introduction and adoption of full-sun cocoa varieties which drives deforestation, iii) Changing climate and climate variability since 1960 which has resulted in the dwindling of areas suitable for cocoa production due to declining rainy days and increasing temperature and iv) gender inequalities whereby although 45% of women provide labour in the cocoa farms but largely work as unpaid labourers on their husbands’ farms due to unfavouable cultural norms and practices. These challenges have been recognized by stakeholders in the cocoa industry including Ghana COCOBOD, farmers, Ministry of Science, Environment, Technology and Innovation and others.
Estimates show that global soil organic carbon loss to the atmosphere could reach 212 Gt, and further decline in biodiversity by 10 % by the year 2050 due to unsustainable land management practices and land conversion. Agricultural land uses, and forest destruction are rapidly causing changes in plant species, species distribution and rendering many species which are unable to adapt to these changes extinct. However, sustainable development approaches and strategies such as agroforestry practices to mitigate climate change also provide means for reducing biodiversity loss and contribute to improvement in soil health. Agroforestry system is an important sink for atmospheric carbon dioxides, and it is capable of mitigating greenhouse gases (GHG) emissions through its diverse plant species and soil sequestration, thereby addressing challenges posed by climate change. It is in the light of these that we propose the sustainable cocoa agroforestry project to address the declining cocoa output while addressing the environmental degradation associated with cocoa production in addition to improving the income of farmers and farming communities through sales of carbon credit.
To promote sustainable cocoa agroforestry practices that reduce greenhouse gas emissions, enhance carbon sequestration, and improve the livelihoods of smallholder cocoa farmers, especially women and youth in Ashanti Region of Ghana
