Costs, Benefits, and Farmer Adoption of Agroforestry: Lessons from Project Experience in Central America

This note summarizes the results of a study of twenty-one agroforestry projects in six Central American and two Caribbean countries (Figure 1) which analyzed the profitability of agroforestryforfarmers as a crucial incentive to adoption. Thefindings indicate that many agroforestry practices are profitable under a broad range of conditions and are therefore likely to be widely applicable. Successful projects have worked with local communities, responding to local needs and preferences and offeringfarmers a broad selection of species and systemsfrom which to choose. Demonstration plots and training of local people as paratechnicians have been low-cost and effective means of identifying techniques and practices suited to the region. Developing countries are facing major rural farm level have not been systernatically assessed land use challenges, including deforestation, (Swinkels and Scherr, 1991). Indeed, producing increasing scarcity of tree products and treesforfinancialbenefitshasoftenbeenlacking environmental degradation on fragile agricultural as a primary project objective, which may have lands. One of the responses to these problems has contributed to project failures. Nor has there been beenthepromotiortof"agroforestry. " Agroforestry, much comparative evaluation of extension while it does not represent broadside reforestation approaches or-their impact on farmer adoption of in its traditional sense, does involve "on-farm tree agroforestry