Social Agriculture in the West African Economic and Monetary Union

Agriculture is central to the economies of Côte d’Ivoire and Benin, providing livelihoods for the majority of the population and underpinning national food security. Yet gaps in formal support systems persist, and youth and women continue to face barriers to accessing land, finance, extension services, and cooperative leadership. These barriers leave many excluded from opportunities to improve productivity or enhance their livelihoods.

Against this backdrop, digital practices are reshaping how farming, processing, and trading take place. Social agriculture—the use of social media to exchange information, access markets, and build communities—has emerged as a defining feature of this transformation. WhatsApp groups have become vital channels for coordination and advice. Facebook pages now serve as storefronts, enabling visibility far beyond local markets. TikTok and Instagram are bringing local produce and new farming techniques to wider audiences, with youth often at the center of digital storytelling. For many agripreneurs, these platforms are more than communication tools—they are extensions of advisory systems, marketplaces, and communities.

This report builds on Caribou’s earlier studies of social agriculture in Kenya, Nigeria, Ghana, and Senegal, extending the analysis to Côte d’Ivoire and Benin. Drawing on interviews, focus groups, and regional desk research, it examines how youth and women are navigating digital opportunities, the barriers they encounter, and the ecosystem conditions that shape their participation. It highlights the ingenuity with which agripreneurs adapt mobile-first tools to their realities, the informal networks that fill gaps left by formal systems, and the new types of work emerging as digital practices evolve.