Nestlé’s income accelerator programme is effectively supporting cocoa-farming families in Côte d’Ivoire. This initiative is yielding measurable enhancements in income and household resilience.
A recent independent evaluation by the KIT Institute reveals that, despite the challenges of the 2023/2024 cocoa season—including unfavorable weather conditions—participants in the program achieved yields that were 18% higher than cocoa farmers not involved in the initiative.
Consequently, participating households reported a total net income increase of 15% compared to their non-participating counterparts.
The evaluation highlights the health benefits for cocoa farms within the program. By adopting good agricultural practices, including pruning, weeding, shade management, and pest control, participating farmers have improved their yields. Furthermore, the introduction of composting has added significant value to the initiative, as confirmed by Nestlé.
Laurent Freixe, CEO of Nestlé, stated, “Our income accelerator programme is one of our key sustainability initiatives and we are committed to expanding it further in Côte d’Ivoire and Ghana, our main cocoa origins. We welcome the interest of governments and other industry players in our approach. Together, we will be able to scale up our work for more impact.”
According to the KIT Institute report, the income accelerator programme is also positively impacting children’s well-being, enhancing food security, and empowering women within the community.
As the programme evolves, it will simplify incentive structures. This adjustment aims to improve clarity and speed of implementation while ensuring the same level of financial support continues.
The new incentives will concentrate on farm support activities, such as pruning, as well as household support initiatives, including education, while maintaining a comprehensive set of program activities.
The progress report, conducted by the KIT Institute, evaluated the programme’s impact during its initial 30 months of scale testing. This assessment involved approximately 2,000 households across 28 cooperatives in Côte d’Ivoire.
