Convincing farmers, decision makers and donors to invest in agroecology requires not only positive environmental impacts, but also the proof of short- and long-term economic returns. However, there is still a knowledge gap regarding direct economic effects of agroecology. Scientific evidence is needed to show the potential of agroecological strategies. Agricultural, resource and environmental economics offer diverse analytical techniques to close this gap. However, the challenge is to choose a suitable methodology which, on the one hand, is practicable in a context where information and data are often limited but, on the other hand, is sophisticated enough to produce meaningful and reliable results.

To facilitate the process of evidence creation, the HFFA Research team was commissioned by the GIZ’s Global Programme Soil Protection and Rehabilitation for Food Security (ProSoil) to develop a methodological guidance for GIZ staff and their partners. This is to accompany the preparation and implementation of such scientific analyses and to provide the framework for a common approach to conducting socio-economic analyses and ecosystem services valuations at ProSoil (and similar DC programmes) in the future.

By providing guidance on choosing an appropriate analytical design for generating evidence, this product aims to support agricultural and rural development programmes in advancing the agro-ecological transition to more sustainable agricultural and food systems.

The methodological guidance in English can be downloaded here.

More information on the project can be found here.