Sikensi, Ivory Coast. In Becedi, less than 90 km from Abidjan, the atmosphere is tense. Despite the announcement of a record guaranteed price for cocoa, producers are experiencing a season of great stress. The promise of wealth is shattered by a fragmented payment system, leaving farmers in a state of heightened insecurity and their life plans at a standstill.

The Painful Illusion of the Record Price

In Becedi, a large village of 9,550 inhabitants in the Sikensi department, it is 2 p.m. on this Sunday afternoon. In Yves Kacou's courtyard, the scene is one of simple but hardworking life: a woman is busy at the stove, children are reviewing their lessons. However, under the bright sun, worry is etched on the face of the head of the household.

Sitting on a stool, a crumpled receipt in his hand, Yves confides his frustration: "I sold my harvest for 300,000 to 400,000 FCFA, but I never get everything ."

"They give me 80,000 or 100,000 francs first. Then I have to come back for the rest. When I come back, it's another 50,000 or 100,000. With that, you can't build anything. You just survive, that's all. "

Yves, however, dreamed of independence. Heir to a field of 4 to 5 hectares bequeathed by his aging father, he aspired to buy land and build his own house for his family, currently housed in a single room of the paternal house.

President Alassane Ouattara's announcement, setting the purchase price of a kilo of cocoa at 2,800 FCFA (4.26 euros) — a historic amount for the world's leading producers — had revived hope.

But this staggered payment system quickly dampened the enthusiasm. "The money never comes all at once," he said, looking at his children. "So we can't accomplish anything. No projects, no investments. It's just about surviving." A reality experienced "by everyone who delivers their cocoa in the area."

The Logistics Bottleneck

To trace this chain of delays, one must go to Sikensi, the nerve center of regional harvesting. On the cooperatives' drying areas, mountains of beans are being stirred. Activity appears normal, but the slowdown is very real.

Under a shed, Sayouba, the head of a cooperative, points to the blockage:

" The problem originates at the port of Abidjan ," he explains. "The trucks arrive, but they aren't unloaded. Our bags remain piled up there. As long as the exporters haven't received the cocoa, the money doesn't come back here."

A single shipment represents "nearly 100 million francs." As long as these funds are frozen at the port, the cooperatives have no choice but to pay the growers with their own funds and proceed with advances. "We give a little to each one, so they don't leave empty-handed."

But we can't pay everyone all at once. » Cooperatives find themselves caught between the pressure from their base and the constraints of a cumbersome and saturated logistics system.

The Paradox of Ivorian Wealth

The story of Yves Kacou is a symptom of a national malaise. The cocoa sector is the engine of the Ivorian economy, producing 1.8 million tons per year and employing 25% of the working population.

Yet, this global wealth does not benefit those at the forefront. Even with a record farmgate price of 2,800 FCFA/kg in 2025, it is estimated that 60 to 80% of farmers live below the poverty line . Only 24% of producers achieve a decent income.

The added value is mostly captured by exporters and large companies, while the planters of Becedi bear the consequences of every logistical delay: mounting debts, postponed family expenses and permanent financial uncertainty.

This situation has dramatic consequences. Faced with a lack of prospects, disillusioned farmers have no choice but to mortgage their land for a paltry advance in order to "make a better life" elsewhere. They leave Becedi for Abidjan, San Pedro, or Bouaké, hoping to find in the city the dignity and future that their ancestral land can no longer offer them.