Farmers in Togo have successfully secured over USD 2.4 million funding from the Global Agriculture and Food Security Program, under the auspices of the World Bank Group, to implement and promote sustainable farming practices throughout the country. The funding will improve the livelihoods of thousands of farmers by increasing their crop yields, enhancing their resilience, and boosting their income. 

The grant has been awarded to the Togolese Coordination of Peasant Organizations and Agricultural Producers (CTOP), which was established in 2001 and represents 500,000 Togolese smallholder farmers. Amongst others, the farmers raise poultry and cattle, grow cereals and crops including coffee, cocoa, soya, cashew nuts and rice, and process vegetables. Some are also fishermen. 

The money will fund a 40 month-long project that starts in August 2024 to strengthen agrocecology in Togo, implementing natural and sustainable farming methods to combat the climate and nature crises and will benefit women and young people in particular. The project will operate in 16 prefectures in the five regions of Togo – Maritime, Plateaux, Centrale, Kara, and Savanes – across four very different agricultural areas: the coast, the forest, humid savannah and dry savannah. 

Difficult choices

The climate and energy crises combined with international conflicts mean Togolese farmers have had to make difficult choices to ensure the survival of their households. As Arthur Zogan, Executive Secretary of the CTOP, explains, “Despite initiatives by the Togolese Government and other organisations, many farmers have been forced to adopt agricultural practices that are harmful to health, water and the soil, such as using unapproved pesticides, to compensate for the rising cost of chemical fertilizers and the scarcity of labour.” 

The rise in the price of chemical fertilizers has pushed a large number of small producers to reduce the areas they cultivate or to opt for cash crops intended for export, notably soya, to the detriment of the rest of their crops. There has also been an increase in deforestation as farmers seek to access more fertile land. Increased periods of drought due to climate change have led to unpredictable water supplies, and, as a result, financial institutions are reluctant to lend farmers money.

Adopting planet-friendly farming practices

The large-scale project, called ProSMAT, aims to turn this situation around and will encourage farmers across Togo to adopt agroecological practices as a way of solving many of the challenges they face. The project aims to train 5,000 young people in agroecological practices; increase production of natural fertilizers and bio-inputs; raise awareness of the benefits of agroecological products among the general population; provide advice and support about agroecoglogical farming to the cooperatives who are part of the CTOP; and influence farming policy at the national level in favour of agroecology. 

The impact of ProSMAT will be far-reaching and includes 20 farm schools being upgraded to deliver training on agroecological market gardening, 50 hectares of land being fully irrigated year-round so market gardening will also be possible in the dry season, and 4,000 mothers and fathers being made aware of the benefits for their children of eating agroecological fruit and vegetables. The money will also be used to set up savings and credit services to 2,250 women involved in agroecology and to support 25 vegetable processing units run by women’s cooperatives. To help increase the sale of their products, five sales spaces for raw and processed agroecological market garden products will be set up and managed in collaboration with the local authorities, CROPPA (which represents cooperatives not part of the CTOP) and traders in urban centres in Lomé, Atakpamé, Sokodé, Kara and Dapaong. 

In all, ProSMAT will benefit 9,885 people, 59% of whom are women. Ultimately, farmers will see an improvement in their crop yields thanks to the use of natural fertilisers and bio-inputs. They also hope to see increased revenue through improved packaging and labelling of their products and access to new markets. 

Set up for success

The Forest and Farm Facility has supported the CTOP since 2019.  This support has been invaluable to the CTOP in helping it secure its funding from the Global Agriculture and Food Security Program. In particular, the FFF has helped many forest and farm producer organizations develop business incubation skills and supported the set up of a business incubation and support centre within the CTOP.  The FFF has also helped provide training on agroecological practices in farm schools run by REJEPPAT (the Network of Young Producers and Agricultural Professionals of Togo), and supported cooperatives to develop their own climate resilience plans. 

Through its support for the CTOP, the FFF has enabled Togolese agricultural and forestry producers' organisations to put forward initiatives that could be scaled up which impact food security, resilience in the face of change, nutrition, as well as gender equality. 

The call for proposals from the Global Agriculture and Food Security Program was aimed precisely at scaling up one or more activities that already existed and needed more support. In their application, the CTOP therefore highlighted the training of young farmers in agro-ecological practices, which has enabled 360 young people, including 101 young women, to be trained and supported in setting up their businesses. 

The Global Agriculture and Food Security Program was launched in 2010 in response to calls from the G20 for the World Bank Group to work with donors to set up a fund for projects which would enhance food security worldwide. Donors to the program include the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, Canada, the Republic of Korea, Spain, and the United States, Australia, Germany, Ireland, Japan, the Netherlands, Norway, and the United Kingdom.