Strategy for Financing Family Farming in the West Region of Cameroon

Abstract

Family farming is a reservoir of jobs in rural areas and contributes a large share to the gross domestic product of countries in sub-Saharan Africa. However, it comes up against many difficulties, including insufficient financial resources to equip itself, increase production and increase the standard of living of populations located in rural areas. The objectives of this article are to identify the sources of financing for smallholder agriculture, present the strategies put in place to mobilize them and explore ways of obtaining the funds necessary to increase yields. Investigations carried out in rural areas of western Cameroon of Cameroon show that funding from the State and donors is scarce and unpredictable. Thus, 65% of peasants use their own resources while 27% resort to borrowing from tontines, leaving 4% of producers to negotiate loans in microfinance institutions. However, 31.5% of the producers hoard their income and 40% place it in tontines while 77% of them have no accounting document, creating confusion about the possibility of profitability of family farming. Adequate financing of family farming will require the establishment of a framework for consultation between producers, donors and the State to enable rural areas to obtain the resources to develop.