Côte d’Ivoire has the world’s largestcocoa sector, producing over 1.4 million metric tons of rawcocoa per year, accounting for thirty two percent of worldproduction. Harvest payments often arrive late due to thecomplex logistics of cash-based payments and, it is notuncommon for the amount farmers receive to be somewhat belowmarket value due to high commissions taken by chains ofintermediary middlemen. Cognizant of these costs andinefficiencies, many actors in the cocoa value chain areexploring alternatives. One such alternative is payingfarmers through Digital financial services (DFS). Thisresearch focuses specifically on mobile money accounts anddiscusses, first, how these have already expanded financialinclusion in Côte d’Ivoire and, secondly, how mobile moneycould help deliver products to cocoa farmers that meet theirneeds. The study is a knowledge product of the Partnershipfor Financial Inclusion, a joint initiative of IFC and TheMasterCard Foundation to expand microfinance and advancedigital financial services in Sub-Saharan Africa. It isorganized as follows: The first section reviews thefinancial inclusion landscape in Côte d’Ivoire, revealingthat DFS has unusually high penetration in rural areas. Thesecond section analyzes the specific financial behavior ofcocoa farmers based on new data collected by IFC,and isfollowed by a third section presenting a framework for howDFS could help improve farmers’ lives. The report concludeswith a call to stakeholders to keep piloting and innovatingwith products and payment channels that cater to thefinancial needs of rural communities in Côte d’Ivoire and beyond.
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