Summary
This report explores the current status of poverty and income of smallholders cocoa producers, and models how increases in yield and cocoa prices received by the producers impact poverty and income. To do this, the authors analysed six data sets derived from household questionnaires of 385–88,896 cocoa producers in Côte d'Ivoire and Ghana. Across all data sets, 30–58% of households earn a gross income below the World Bank extreme poverty line and the majority (73–90%) do not earn a Living Income. Households with less income per person per day generally achieve lower cocoa yields, consist of more household members, have a smaller land size available, and rely more on cocoa income than households with higher incomes. When comparing the effects of increasing prices and yields on gross income, yield increases lead to larger benefits especially for the poorest households.