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The UCLS brings together 22 cooperatives from Haut Sambirano, a cocoa-growing region in northwest Madagascar. These cooperatives represent 450 members, 22% of whom are women. The cocoa marketed by the Union is a fine and renowned cocoa.
Despite considerable natural resources, Madagascar has one of the highest poverty rates in the world: 80% of the island’s inhabitants live below the poverty line, 85% of whom are in rural areas. Madagascar’s economy is essentially based on agriculture. Furthermore, the country is highly vulnerable to climate change. 42% of children under the age of five, representing more than 2 million young people, still suffer from chronic malnutrition.
The economic development facilitated by UCLS has a strong impact on the smallest producers, who see their incomes improve. Most of them also cultivate other products, primarily for self-consumption. Their situation is more favorable than that of the majority of farmers on the “Grande Île,” especially those in food crop sectors. One of the main strengths provided by UCLS to its members is the support toward deeply agroecological practices: the use of bio-fertilizers and bio-pesticides; crop association with trees that allow for water storage and nitrogen fixation. These practices contribute partially to resilience against climate change impacting rainfall: for example, water storage by banana trees allows cocoa trees to have access to water reserves.
