Cocoa Certification in Cameroon: Socioeconomic Determinants and Performance of Producers in Mbam Division, Center Region

Aims: The present research aimed to analyse the constraints and challenges of the certification of cocoa in the mbam division, center region of cameroon.

Study Design: In this study, the simple random sampling method was used for the selection of cocoa farmers in the study.

Place and Duration of Study: The study was conducted in the ombessa and bokito sub divisions of the mbam and inoubou division, center region of cameroon in 2022.

Methodology: A total of 300 respondent cocoa farmers were randomly selected from two different sub divisions: ombessa (170) and bokito (130) farmers. Other stakeholders, exporters and agricultural extension experts were also consulted.

Results: Field findings revealed that 66% of cocoa farmers in mbam have adopted certification against 34% who have not yet adopted with regards to gender, there is a high proportion of adopters of cocoa certification (65.96% for men and 66.67% for women) than the non-adopters (34.04% for men against 33.33% for the women). furthermore, majority (80%) of the respondents who have adopted cocoa certification are below 35 years of age against 20% who have not adopted. regarding the level of education, field findings also revealed that 100% of respondents with university studies have adopted the certification while a greater percent (80%) of those who have never been to school have not adopted. the results also show that majority (39%) of the respondents have an experience of 21 to 30 years in cocoa farming. Furthermore, it was found on the field that the production of certified cocoa is a decreasing function of the area exploited; it is 83.33% at less than 5ha, to 54.17% for farms of more than 10ha. majority (70.83%) of the adopters of cocoa certification here belong to producer organizations (gic, cooperatives) against 53.57% who adopted without belonging to any producer organizations. furthermore, findings also show that producers of both certified and non-certified cocoa have a better total income with an average of 5,578,812.5 fcfa, than those who produce only certified cocoa and non-certified producers.

Conclusion: The study concluded that there is an inverse relationship between the size of the cocoa plantation and the adoption of certification. it also shows that the producers of certified cocoa have a better technical and economic performance than the others. The study therefore recommends that institutions should multiply financial incentives and other facilities for certified cocoa producers so that the remuneration for their effort is fair and equitable to enable them live a decent life.