Linking communities of practice with value chain development in smallholder farming systems

Recognizing that value chains involve complex social and economic relationships, there are shortcomings in existing approaches to governance, whereby different communities in smallholder agriculture could instead work together, leading to increased resilience. Relations of power, politics, socialization, and a collective history of slavery were identified by smallholders as factors contributing to mistrust, and provoked the desire to act independently rather than collaborating in communities of practice. “Communities of practice” literature is not included in value chain research and development; however, it is helpful in discerning the core challenges of collaboration, trust, and learning, particularly in developing area contexts