The Role of Governments in Making Certification Effective: A Synthesis of the Evidence and a Case Study of Cocoa in Côte d'Ivoire

Industry associations and NGOs have employed voluntary incentive programs to promote social and environmental objectives, including certification. This approach has spread and is now mainstreamed into agricultural commodity markets. By 2012, certified products occupied reputable market segments, and crop area dedicated to certified agricultural commodities increased over 10 percent per year between 2000 and 2012. Certification programs typically offer benefits to value chain actors in exchange for adherence to specific practices or standards. These benefits include price premiums, preferential market access, and training. Companies then market certified products as supporting principles associated with the certification, such as sustainable agriculture or fair-trading. The approach has grown rapidly, with certified products occupying a significant market share of the nine largest agricultural commodities by 2012. Voluntary standards programs have certified cocoa grown on approximately 23 percent of the world's cocoa crop area by 2016. Crop area dedicated to certified commodities has continued to expand, with growth rates varying greatly by commodity. Eco-certification schemes, which support environmental principles, typically include standards for organic or sustainable agriculture, natural resource conservation, and reduced deforestation. Standards for reducing deforestation usually focus on conserving primary forest and require that the commodity be produced on land converted to agriculture no more recently than a specified year. Some eco-certification schemes also include standards that exclude incursion into other types of forest, with varying levels of stringency among programs. Most major certification programs require producers to meet legal obligations relating to protected areas and exclude incursions into primary forest. However, the effectiveness of certification in preventing deforestation is a topic of debate. Between 2000 and 2012, certified areas of certified commodities such as palm oil, soy, and soybean had greater tree cover than areas of uncertified commodities. This may indicate either the expansion of certification into recently deforested areas or certification's inability to prevent deforestation. Despite these challenges, a small subset of agricultural commodity schemes has been successful in achieving certification objectives. These schemes have demonstrated that certification can be an effective tool for reducing deforestation, but only when implemented correctly. The role of governments in making certification effective is crucial, as they can provide the necessary support and oversight to ensure that certification programs are implemented correctly. In the case of Côte d'Ivoire, certification has been a key approach to reducing deforestation. However, the country's experience highlights the challenges of implementing certification effectively. The government's role in making certification effective is critical, as they can provide the necessary support and oversight to ensure that certification programs are implemented correctly. The ProLand Sustainable Agriculture case studies illustrate strategies used to reduce deforestation caused by agricultural expansion. Drawing on recent evidence-based research, the case studies capture insights and findings relevant to USAID programming. Private sector actors also use certification to strengthen brands, improve brand loyalty, reduce reputational risk, and increase sales and profits. Certification theory suggests that offering value chain actors incentives to adopt specific behaviors can leverage transnational market forces to compensate for the weakness of local governmental regulation and achieve financial, social, and environmental objectives. The use of certification to mitigate deforestation is a complex issue, and its effectiveness depends on various factors, including the design and implementation of certification programs. In conclusion, certification has been a prominent approach in the agricultural industry since the early 1990s. While certification has grown rapidly, its effectiveness in preventing deforestation is a topic of debate. A small subset of agricultural commodity schemes has been successful in achieving certification objectives, but only when implemented correctly. The role of governments in making certification effective is crucial, as they can provide the necessary support and oversight to ensure that certification programs are implemented correctly.