Abstract
Increasing agricultural productivity does not often provide a viable route out of poverty or hunger for the poorest households, because their farms tend to be small with low yield potential. These challenges will be amplified as climate change causes shifting patterns of crop suitability and disease and pest pressures. Off-farm sources of income are often cited as an alternative to increased farm productivity, but in remote communities such opportunities can be very limited. Shea trees may offer an alternative. In northern Ghana, shea butter has been promoted as a climate-smart option for increasing household incomes. Here we present a quantitative study of 223 households, half of whom were exposed to improved value-chain opportunities for sale of shea butter. An innovative survey tool called RHoMIS (Rural Household Multi-Indicator Survey) allowed rapid evaluation of the project impacts on multiple household welfare metrics: income, food security and gender. The survey results showed that the poorest households self-selected to take part in shea butter production, and that the resulting income remained in the control of women. When compared to a control population, those who took part in shea production substantially increased their incomes and became more food secure. We conclude that the promotion of shea butter value chains can function as a complement to CSA activities, especially by increasing adaptive capacity. The shea trees themselves serve as a buffer against desertification and protect soil and water resources, and shea butter production boosts incomes, making households more resilient in the face of climate shocks and other negative events.
Highlights
People suffering extreme poverty are typically the most vulnerable to system shocks, including those caused by climate change (FAO 2016)
We argue that increased shea butter production, supported by better business infrastructure leads to increased incomes and makes households more resilient to negative shocks
We evaluated the TREE AID programme using the Rural Household Multi-Indicator Survey (RHoMIS), a carefully designed, low-cost, flexible household survey tool for efficient characterisation of farm systems in communities suffering from poverty and food insecurity (Hammond et al 2017; Rosenstock et al 2017)
Summary
People suffering extreme poverty are typically the most vulnerable to system shocks, including those caused by climate change (FAO 2016). The non-governmental organization (NGO) TREE AID led a 5-year programme (2012–2017) with several goals: (i) increase income of communities involved in sourcing and processing shea nuts through improvements in product quality and quantity; (ii) increase women’s empowerment by building organizational capacity and commercial infrastructure including business groups, warehouses and credit schemes; (iii) diversify the buyers’ base to allow long-term and stable incomes for the producers; (iv) protect ecosystems and promote climate resilience through the reduction of the environmental impact of shea nut sourcing and production. TREE AID’s efforts included helping producers form “union” organisations focused on regional marketing, services and value addition. It worked to build buffers against market fluctuations by securing minimum price guarantees from national and international buyers of shea butter.
Sign-in/Register to view highlights & summary Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a callDisclaimer: All third-party content on this website/platform is and will remain the property of their respective owners and is provided on "as is" basis without any warranties, express or implied. Use of third-party content does not indicate any affiliation, sponsorship with or endorsement by them. Any references to third-party content is to identify the corresponding services and shall be considered fair use under The CopyrightLaw.
