New tools and technologies to promote dynamic agroforestry transition

Exploring nature-based agritech innovations

Project Partners: Esoko and National Institute of Agricultural Botany (NIAB)

West Africa suffers from low and in some areas, declining crop yields – particularly for tree crops such as cocoa. Threats include climate change, pests and diseases, and illegal mining. The future for West African tree and cash crops could either involve more intensive agricultural inputs, or exploring nature-based solutions to climate threats to tree crops, such as via agroforestry, which supports beneficial biodiversity to build resilience into the production system.

Brazil has traditional systems of agroforestry (cabruca) and is also introducing new agroforestry systems in states such as Bahia and Rio de Janeiro. Brazil and Ghana share many common crops: e.g. cocoa, coffee, maize, oil palm, cassava, tomato and mango. While Ghana’s agritech sector is growing very fast, Brazil also has a highly developed agri-tech sector with many new innovations, for example, for farmer decision-making support and digital agriculture. Therefore, there are lessons that professionals in both countries can take from existing practice. In many cases where agroforestry is most successful, such as cabruca systems, the shade-trees and other vegetation on farms are also valuable to the farmer; this is similar to the relatively new dynamic agroforestry movement in Ghana. Dynamic agroforestry is being adopted by a small number of Ghanaian farmers and initiatives, especially for tree/cash crops.

Developing a blueprint for dynamic agroforestry transition

This travel grant will enable a UK researcher and Esoko, an emergent Ghanaian technology-based agronomy/extension services provider to visit successful initiatives involving cocoa and other crops as part of dynamic agroforestry (and similar) systems in Brazil. By building relationships with Brazilian farmer organisations, NGOs and agritech in this area, it will be possible to move towards developing a detailed blueprint for dynamic agroforestry transition in Ghanaian cocoa and other tree crops. Viewing real-life examples of where farms in Brazil have implemented agroforestry and are successfully producing a range of food and non-food crops alongside each other under forest cover in an economically sustainable way will inform how this could also work in Ghana. This might also include the types of financing and materials support that farmers might need to join a programme and stay with it. The blueprint would be eventually developed by Esoko, using “best practice” cases and information from Brazil alongside their experiences in Ghana, and seek partnerships in the wider West African region to develop this further.

For more information

For more information on this project, contact us, or view all projects funded under the Climate-Smart Agriculture Partnership programme.

Innovate UK Climate-Smart Agriculture Partnership: UK-Brazil-Africa brings together innovative people and organisations to promote climate-smart agriculture in Africa.