Agroecology for Sustainable Development: Evidence on Multidimensional Performance from a Cross-Country TAPE Assessment in Africa

Beatrice Adoyo^1*Matthias Samuel Geck¹Chabi Adeyemi²Joe Alpuerto³Arinloye A Djalalou-Dine²Dickens Ateku¹Patrice Autfray⁴Carlos Barahona-Zamora⁵Robin Chacha¹Rémi Cluset³Faith Innocent⁶Valentine Karari¹Kersting David⁶Dave Mills⁵Andrew M. Sila¹Martin Oulu⁶Alex Thomson⁵Elvis Weullow¹Leigh Winowiecki¹Endalkachew Woldemeskel⁷Pittaki Zampela¹Levke Sörensen⁸

• ¹The Center for International Forestry Research and World Agroforestry (CIFOR-ICRAF), Nairobi, Kenya
• ²The Center for International Forestry Research and World Agroforestry (CIFOR-ICRAF), Abomey-Calavi, Benin
• ³Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations, Rome, Italy
• ⁴French Agricultural Research Centre for International Development, Antananarivo, Madagascar
• ⁵Statistics for Sustainable Development (Stats4SD), England, United Kingdom
• ⁶Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit GmbH (German Agency for International Cooperation-GIZ), Kisumu, Kenya
• ⁷The Center for International Forestry Research and World Agroforestry (CIFOR-ICRAF), Addis Ababa, Ethiopia
• ⁸Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit GmbH (German Agency for International Cooperation-GIZ), Bonn, Germany

Agroecology is increasingly acknowledged as a transformative approach for advancing agrifood systems towards the achievement of SDGs. While substantial evidence exists on the economic, environmental and social contributions of selected agroecological farming practices, large-scale, cross-context evidence on the multidimensional performance of agroecology as contextualized by the FAO’s 10 elements remain limited. Soil health, a foundation of sustainable production, is rarely assessed holistically within agroecological systems. This study integrated and applied two complementary global tools: the Tool for Agroecology Performance Evaluation (TAPE) and the Land Degradation Surveillance Framework (LDSF) to 839 farming households across Benin, Ethiopia, Kenya, and Madagascar. The analysis examined how varying degrees of agroecological transition relate to multidimensional performance indicators. Findings indicate that higher levels of agroecological integration are positively and significantly associated with improvements in agrobiodiversity, farm productivity, food security and nutrition, household income, and soil health. These gains are most evident when multiple elements are implemented simultaneously in a synergistic and systemic way. Beyond agroecological farm practices, social dimensions—anchored in human and social values, culture and food traditions, and the co-creation and sharing of knowledge—emerge as critical drivers to agroecological transitions. Although agroecological intensification associated with improved overall soil health scores, soils across sites remain moderately acidic with low SOC. Complementing qualitative soil assessments with soil sampling and laboratory tests proved essential in assessing subtle shifts in soil physiochemical characteristics that would otherwise remain hidden using traditional TAPE indicators. Persistent challenges to agroecological transitions include high cost of ecological farm inputs, land tenure insecurity, particularly for youths and women, and declining youth engagement in agriculture. The study highlights the urgent need for enabling policies that support agroecological business models, ensure access to affordable inputs, promote labor-saving innovations, and strengthen tenure rights for marginalized groups. The study underscores the value of adopting a systemic, holistic approach in evaluating food systems performance, and provides actionable insights to key actors on advancing agroecological transitions.