The global food system is challenged by population growth, climate change and environmental degradation, leading to global increase in demand and local decrease in supply. Millions of smallholders in West Africa are responsible for 70% of the global cocoa supply from monoculture and agroforestry systems, which provides them food and income essential to their food security. However, current yields average 400 kg/ha while potential production exceeds 5000 kg/ha. A large proportion of the plantations are old and/or neglected and insufficient use of farm inputs further reduces productivity. This project aims for science-based, sustainable intensification of cocoa production assuring high and stable production now and under future climate change and policy scenarios. We provide integrated crop-, field- and farm-level research exploring technical and socio-economically feasible options. Next to delivering soil-, crop- and farm decision support models, we deliver models to support effective service delivery at scale by public and private partners.

In this third year we have submitted and published a number of scientific articles. Annemarieke de Bruin has analysed how people in our learning process perceive the Dutch food system transition from a justice perspective. Jelle Silvius and Anne Hoogstra have analysed the transformative potential of 29 out of 174 circular agriculture initiatives in the region. Durk Tamsma has started a scenario analysis about consequences of closing nutrient cycles in the North of the Netherlands in terms of agricultural productivity, land use, and our diet. We also organized the third workshop of our learning process in Groningen.

This project addresses the challenge of scaling climate smart nutrient management among African smallholder farmers by addressing the institutional factors and conditions relating to CSA knowledge service delivery (the CCAFS overall research question). It aims to understand and improve the ‘scaling readiness’ of climate smart, nutrient management decision support tools (DST) in different institutional environments: Ethiopia and Tanzania. ‘Scaling readiness’ is seen as the product of: (a) the fit between the DSTs (and its constituent climate smart nutrient management advices) and their envisaged users who operate at different scales, and; (b) the necessary (institutional) conditions which enable scaling by these different actors (i.e. extension, NGOs, agro-dealers). By working directly with different users operating at different scales, we examine the user logics that can inform the design of better decision support tools and the enabling (institutional) environments, which together shape the effective scaling of climate smart nutrient management advice.

A mobile phone app (Management Based Advice, short farmerMBA) was expanded in the Southern Highlands of Tanzania. In the 2021-2022 growing season, 59 government extensionists received a farmerMBA training and more than 2500 farmers received a farmerMBA advice. Comparing maize fields with and without MBA advice, yields increased between 14-24% over two growing seasons. Initially targeted for maize, the app now also includes three legumes (common beans, groundnut and soya). Improving advices on agronomic and nutrient management enables farmers to use their resources more efficiently, which supports their livelihoods and contributes to improving food security in the region.

This research project supports stakeholders in the soya bean value chain in Tanzania. The growing market for soya offers opportunities for smallholder farmers to enhance their food security an income. As soya beans can fix atmospheric nitrogen, their cultivation can reduce fertilizer use. The project uses a smartphone application to deliver advice soya yield-enhancing measures. Agronomic management and production data collected with the application is then used as market information (i.e. production volumes, locations, prices, etc.). Workshops with farmers, traders and agro-input dealers are used to develop procedures for more efficient agronomic knowledge and market information sharing.