In a key effort to elevate the livelihood of cocoa farmers, representatives from FAO and the Joint Research Centre (JRC) of the European Commission convened in Seville, Spain, on 6–7 June 2024. This meeting, which was held within the context of the Global Sustainable Cocoa Initiative (SCI), was a crucial step towards completing a comprehensive study on living incomes for cocoa producers in Cameroon.

The SCI, a joint initiative by the European Commission and FAO, is dedicated to fostering a sustainable, equitable, and productive cocoa value chain from producer to consumer. Its ambitious goals include securing a “living income” for farmers, combating deforestation and eliminating child labour. Within this framework, FAO’s Investment Centre and Agrifood Economics and Policy Division (ESA), are collaborating with JRC on a study to determine the income levels required for cocoa farmers in Cameroon to achieve a decent standard of living, termed the Living Income Benchmark (LIB). To this end, FAO and the JRC have been collecting primary data from cocoa-producing households and service providers in the cocoa-growing regions of Cameroon.

The two-day mission to Seville aimed to unify efforts across institutions, ensuring a consistent and robust methodology for the analysis. Presentations and discussion focused on methods and innovations for the estimation of LIBs and producer incomes, leveraging the unique expertise of each organization. A comparative assessment of available methodologies, drawing on experience from FAO’s projects such as Rural Income Generating Activities (RIGA) and the Rural Livelihoods Information System (RuLIS), laid the foundation for identifying best practices to apply in the living income study. The findings from a systematic review of the literature highlighted innovative methods for validating welfare indicators that can be applied to the analysis. Finally, the team agreed to model policy scenarios to enhance the study’s policy recommendations. The meeting concluded with a clear roadmap for completing the study and results will be presented to key sectoral stakeholders in Cameroon in late 2024. FAO and JRC will collaborate with the Government of Cameroon, FAO-Cameroon and local partners to engage stakeholders in the validation and dissemination of findings. This approach will ensure that the insights and recommendations from the study are effectively communicated and implemented, ultimately contributing to a sustainable and prosperous future for cocoa farmers in Cameroon.