A woman works in a field in the Ivory Coast. Image from Wikimedia Commons. CC-BY-SA-4.0

This article was submitted as part of the Global Voices Climate Justice fellowship, which pairs journalists from Sinophone and Global Majority countries to investigate the effects of Chinese development projects abroad. Find more stories here.

In order to increase its international soft power and gain access to the booming markets emerging throughout Africa, China is looking to significantly increase its presence on the continent and strengthen cooperation with African governments. In November 2021, the African Development Bank (AfDB) signed a partnership agreement with China to promote agricultural development in African countries.

While the partnership agreement is relatively new, some African countries have been working with China to improve their agricultural outputs for decades. Since 1995, China has been assisting the Ivory Coast in refining its rice production methods. Speaking at the closing ceremony of the “Aid to Côte d'Ivoire Rice Technology Training Course,” on July 28, 2017, Tang Weibin, Ambassador to the Ivory Coast, said:

唐卫斌, 驻科特迪瓦大使. “中科都是农业大国，两国农业合作历史悠久。中国政府于1995年援助科方建设了占地432公顷的格格杜垦区，双方就此项目进行了长达近20年的农业技术合作。通过引进中国水稻品种，垦区内每公顷水稻产量提高了1.5吨，稻农直接增收10%以上。

Both China and the Ivory Coast are major agricultural countries, and the two countries have a long history of agricultural cooperation. In 1995, the Chinese government assisted the Ivory Coast in building the 432-hectare Guiguido Reclamation Area. The two sides have engaged in agricultural technology cooperation on this project for nearly 20 years. By introducing Chinese rice varieties, rice yields per hectare in the reclamation area have increased by 1.5 tons, directly increasing rice farmers’ income by over 10 percent.

The Guiguido Reclamation Area refers to a hydro-agricultural project for rice in Divo, a town in the southwestern Ivory Coast. Since the project was founded, China has been assisting local farmers in managing rice production, repairing and maintaining water conservation facilities, and training workers in the rice industry. Through the partnership, rice production has increased from an average of 2.5 tons per hectare to 4 tons per hectare, and farmers can earn an average of CFA francs 1.578 million (USD 2,800) per year.

To help farmers keep up with new pressures brought on by the climate crisis, China will be donating CFA francs 120 million (about USD 216,500) to buy modern equipment for the Guiguidou rice-growing area. This investment isn’t isolated. China has also invested in the Ivory Coast’s rubber farming and cocoa industries. In September 2020, China provided CFA francs 216 billion in financing (nearly USD 390 million) for the construction of the Abidjan cocoa processing plant in Akoupé-Zeudji, on the outskirts of Abidjan, Ivory Coast. The factory was inaugurated on June 27, 2025, and is primarily owned by the Ivorian government.

Lu Huaheng, a technical director at the Abidjan cocoa processing plant, told the Chinese-state-affiliated People’s Daily:

科特迪瓦是全球最大可可出口国，出口收入占全国出口总额的40%，但此前近20家大型加工厂全被外资垄断。如今，科方拥有了首家大型可可加工厂与仓储中心，增强了在全球可可市场的话语权。”承建方留驻阿比让可可加工厂负责运维保障的技术总监陆华恒向本报记者介绍。

The Ivory Coast is the world’s largest cocoa exporter, with export revenue accounting for 40 percent of the country's total exports. However, nearly 20 large-scale processing plants were previously monopolized by foreign investors. Now, the Ivory Coast has its first large-scale cocoa processing plant and storage center, strengthening its voice in the global cocoa market.

While this major upheaval in the Ivorian agricultural sector is contributing to the fight against rural poverty, some environmentalists are asking how the country can balance its economic development with climate justice as it struggles to navigate the severe effects of climate change.

Vulnerability of Ivorian agriculture

Women at work in a field in the Ivory Coast. Image from Wikimedia Commons. CC-BY-SA-4.0

Agriculture is one of the pillars of the Ivorian economy. It accounts for 25 percent of the country's gross domestic product (GDP) and employs over 60 percent of its population of over 32 million. The country has a strong agricultural sector and is the world’s top producer of cocoa and cashews. It is also a leader in the production of natural rubber and palm oil.

However, Ivorian agriculture is not immune to the devastating effects of climate change: rising temperatures, irregular rainfall, increasingly frequent droughts and floods, soil degradation, and deforestation caused by intensive pesticide use and logging are disrupting crop growth and leaving citizens vulnerable — particularly those who live in under-resourced, rural areas.

While the major sectors mentioned above have significant resources to mitigate the effects of climate change at their disposal, rural smallholder farmers, who are on the front line of local food production, are powerless to mitigate yield instability, which directly threatens food security and market supply.

Yao Kouassi, a rice farmer in Agboville (a town in the southeast of the country), told Global Voices:

Le changement climatique, nous le vivons déjà. La pluie ne respecte plus les saisons, nos récoltes périssent et c’est un signal fort qui devrait normalement nous alerter et nous amener à prendre des mesures fortes pour sauver nos cultures.

We are already experiencing climate change. Rainfall no longer follows the seasons, our crops are dying, and this is a strong signal that should normally alert us and prompt us to take strong measures to save our crops.

While cooperation with China has largely benefited the Ivory Coast, those benefits sometimes don’t trickle down to those on the outskirts of society. As CGAP, a think tank focusing on global financial inclusivity, wrote in a 2017 working paper, “Smallholder farmers are the lifeblood of Côte d'Ivoire, but they are largely neglected by formal financial institutions, which are concentrated in urban areas.” Without access to financing for optimized seeds, equipment, and training, many rural farmers risk being left behind.

Strong Chinese support

The Guiguido rice hydro-agricultural project in Divo is a model of adaptation that can provide long-term solutions for Ivorian agriculture. China’s involvement in the Ivorian rice sector is aimed at providing modern agricultural equipment and improved rice varieties, as well as training local producers and technicians with the help of Chinese experts. At the launch of this project, Yacouba Dembélé, Director General of the Agency for the Development of the Rice Sector in Côte d'Ivoire, said:

… la Chine est l'un des pays qui a fait le plus d'efforts en envoyant le plus d'aide à la Côte d'Ivoire. Elle nous envoie régulièrement du matériel et envoie nos paysans en Chine pour les former, et il y a aussi des experts chinois qui viennent ici. Chaque année, ce sont au moins 50 personnes qui sont formées.

… China is one of the countries that has made the most effort by sending the most aid to the Ivory Coast. It regularly sends us equipment and sends our farmers to China for training, and there are also Chinese experts who come here. Every year, at least 50 people are trained.

Dembélé explains: 

… la Côte d'Ivoire s'efforce d'atteindre d'ici 2025 l'autosuffisance en riz et d'augmenter sa production de riz blanchi à plus de 2,6 millions de tonnes, ce qui implique de nombreux facteurs, notamment la maîtrise de l'eau, la disponibilité des semences, la construction d'usines de transformation, un système de distribution de riz sur le territoire national et la mécanisation.

… the Ivory Coast is striving to achieve self-sufficiency in rice by 2025 and to increase its production of milled rice to more than 2.6 million tons, which involves many factors, including water management, seed availability, the construction of processing plants, a rice distribution system throughout the country, and mechanization.

Guo Changyou, head of the Chinese Agricultural Technical Assistance Mission (MATAC) in Côte d'Ivoire, adds:

Cette fois, nous avons fourni un lot de machines agricoles à la Côte d'Ivoire, notamment des sélecteurs de riz, des moissonneuses-batteuses, des fraiseuses à riz et dix tonnes de semences de riz. Nous utilisons ces mesures les plus pratiques pour aider au développement de l'industrie du riz en Côte d'Ivoire et espérons que l'industrie du riz en Côte d'Ivoire pourra atteindre l'autosuffisance le plus rapidement possible à travers notre contribution.

This time, we have provided the Ivory Coast with a batch of agricultural machinery, including rice sorters, combine harvesters, rice milling machines, and ten tons of rice seeds. We are using the most practical measures to help develop the rice industry in the Ivory Coast and hope that the rice industry in the Ivory Coast will be able to achieve self-sufficiency as quickly as possible through our contribution.

The project’s success will be measurable through indicators such as reduced post-harvest losses through mechanization and modern storage, improved yields, and increased income for certain families. While hoping for better results, a rice farmer named Amoin (a pseudonym) is optimistic. She told Global Voices:

Nous espérons une nette amélioration de nos rendements ainsi que nos revenus d’ici quelques mois ou au fil des années. Mais quel sera le prix à payer?  Nous ne devons pas trop s’intéresser à nos profits et ignorer les conséquences climatiques que peuvent engendrer cette innovation.

We hope to see a significant improvement in our yields and income within a few months or over the coming years. But what will be the price to pay? We must not focus too much on our profits and ignore the climate consequences that this innovation may have.

Some are concerned that this project will make Ivorian rice farming dependent on external parties, limiting the Ivory Coast’s food and agricultural sovereignty. Because the machines come from China, spare parts must also come from China in the event of a breakdown, creating technical dependence. Modernized, large-scale irrigation also poses the risk of overexploiting water resources. Small farmers are also concerned about being edged out of the market, as they typically do not have enough resources to afford ultra-sophisticated machines in their rice fields.

Women selling yams in a village near Comoé National Park in the Ivory Coast. Image from Wikimedia Commons. CC-BY-SA-4.0 

Climate justice issue

While China’s support in the Ivory Coast’s agricultural sector has yielded undeniable fruits, it also comes with complications. Chinese investments in the modernization of the rice sector and the construction of the cocoa processing plant represent a real climate justice issue for the country. As the Ivory Coast’s leading bilateral trading partner, China is intensifying initiatives to accelerate better yields for Ivorian cocoa. With increased yields and demand also comes the risk of accelerating deforestation, biodiversity loss, and the overuse of water resources.

Some environmentalists say this will lead to the overexploitation of land that is supposed to contribute to the country's reforestation. In 2022, an investigation by the NGO Mighty Earth revealed how protected forests are being exploited to produce cocoa for export. According to the investigation report, nearly 40 percent of Ivorian cocoa comes from illegally deforested areas. The report cites individuals who acknowledge their involvement in this illegal cocoa trade chain:

… les propriétaires des entrepôts de cacao installées dans ces campements illégaux ont expliqué ouvertement qu’ils s’approvisionnaient en cacao cultivé dans les aires protégées autour d’eux. Les négociants de cacao tout comme les chocolatiers nous ont aussi confié qu’ils étaient conscients qu’une part importante des fèves de Côte d’Ivoire qu’ils achetaient avaient probablement été cultivées dans des aires protégées.

… the owners of cocoa warehouses set up in these illegal camps openly explained that they sourced their cocoa from protected areas around them. Cocoa traders and chocolate makers also told us that they were aware that a significant proportion of the beans they purchased from the Ivory Coast had probably been grown in protected areas.

With Chinese funding in the agricultural sector, this new industrialization risks exacerbating or accelerating deforestation by once again violating these protected areas. While additional investment and support could be a boon for the Ivory Coast, innovation must be measured and weighed against social and environmental concerns.