The challenge
The Cocoa Household Income Diversification Project, initiated by Barry Callebaut Sourcing AG, Cocoa Horizons Foundation, and Aldi South Group in 2020-2022 and co-funded under the Beyond Chocolate Program, aims to reach a living income for 1,500 smallholder farmers via Barry Callebaut’s Cocoa Horizons program in Ghana.
As land for farming becomes exhaustive, land ownership is the single most crucial step for cocoa farmers to secure their current livelihoods and future livelihood security for themselves and their households. The lack of land documents has become a significant challenge among smallholder farmers, particularly women and migrant farmers, affecting their ability to invest long-term in the land.
As a contribution to the Beyond Chocolate Living Income targets, securing land documents for cocoa farmers will enable them to make long-term farm investments, such as cocoa tree replanting or shade tree planting for agroforestry, and increase their bankability and chances to access finance.
Our approach
Meridia is the execution partner for securing land rights documents.
Activities undertaken by Meridia include farmer sensitisation and sign-up, geo and legal data collection and verification, document production, signature collection from chiefs, lawyers and licensed surveyors and document delivery.
The partnership
Cocoa Horizons Foundation, Callebaut (Barry Callebaut Belgium), Aldi South group, Boris B Farms Limited, Envirofit, Koudjis Ghana Limited, Solidaridad, West Africa Limited, and Meridia.
*Picture by Cocoa Horizons
“The land registration documents will give beneficiary farmers a long-term view of their cocoa farming businesses and empower them to make the right investment decisions to enhance farm productivity and improve their livelihoods”
Fred Frimpong
Country Sustainability Manager for Barry Callebaut/Nyonkopa Cocoa Buying Ltd, Ghana
First results
One of the critical deliverables of the project was to pilot land rights documents for about 500 farmers with approximately two farms in Traditional Area Sefwi Wiawso in the Western North Region of Ghana.
During a Durbar attended by Traditional authorities on 29 June 2022, documentation was received by over 500 cocoa farmers, mainly migrants, including 120 women. The beneficiary farmers came from Adabokrom, Bodi and Asawinso Cocoa Districts.