RESEARCH NEEDS FOR SUSTAINABLE COCOA PRODUCTION IN GHANA

When aiming to improve livelihoods it is important to study the dynamics when it comes to gender, to understand the potential outcomes of the project interventions for men and for women. Therefore, a gender assessment should be part of the baseline study (Anon., personal communication). Gender in cocoa farming relates to several different topics, including: access to land, finance, agrochemicals and extension services. For all of these the gender dynamics thus need to be taken into account. With regards to biodiversity conservation, it can be relevant to study the role of women in agriculture and the impact their actions have on the environment. Moreover, women’s perception of biodiversity should be assessed and opportunities for capacity building could be identified to make women play an important role in biodiversity conservation (Anon., personal communication).

Land rights for women are relevant for biodiversity conservation on cocoa farms, since insecure land rights can serve as a disincentive for sustainable management of resources. It is often difficult for women to acquire land to establish a cocoa farm, which can either be done through inheritance or personal acquisition through buying or sharecropping. When it comes to inheritance, women are often disadvantaged though matrilineal systems seem to provide women with more opportunities to acquire and pass on land compared to patrilineal systems (Duncan, 2010). Buying land is also difficult for women, since land is expensive and women often lack access to finance.

Alternatively, marriage can provide women access to land. Women are usually expected to assist on their husband’s farm as part of her domestic obligations, since this is what provides the families income. If a man and wife establish a cocoa farm together, the woman will have rights to (a smaller) part of the land. However, if a woman marries her husband after the farm has been established, she often does not have any rights to the land (Duncan, 2010). 

Gender also plays a role in access to finance. Within the household, the income is often in control of the man since he is considered the producer of the cocoa, whereas women play a complementary role. Women will sometimes even need permission to use money from other sources than cocoa, such as additional livelihoods (Anon., personal communication).

For individual female farmers, access to finance to invest in the farm is expected to be difficult as well, especially when they need to provide collateral to access loans. Moreover, access to agrochemicals is also expected to differ for men and women. However, it appears that this is not well studied. Finally, the difference between boys and girls in child protection in cocoa farming communities has not been studied, but it appears that boys do more heavy and hazardous work whereas girls are involved in chores around the house. At the same time, boys are more likely to go to school. This area has not been studied extensively in Ghana and it might be relevant to look into how these differences will affect future gender relations in cocoa farming.