Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC)

One Acre Fund began operations in the Democratic Republic of Congo in 2024 with the launch of the Preparatory Project on Smallholder Agriculture Without Deforestation/Projet préparatoire d’Agriculture sans déforestation de petites exploitations program(PAZD), followed by the larger Project for the provision of agricultural inputs and the transition to sedentary farming among smallholder farmers in Kongo-Central/ Projet d’approvisionnement en intrants et sédentarisation de l’agriculture paysanne dans le Kongo-central program(PAPS) in 2025. Together, these initiatives support smallholder farmers in Kongo Central to transition from slash-and-burn agriculture to more productive, sustainable, and forest-friendly farming systems. The program focuses on improving farmer livelihoods while reducing pressure on forests through access to quality inputs, agroforestry, technical training, and Payments for Environmental Services (PES).

One Acre Fund currently operates in the province of Kongo Central, with activities concentrated in the territories of Songololo and Mbanza Ngungu. Since launch, the program has rapidly expanded its reach and has already exceeded most of its initial implementation targets, demonstrating strong farmer demand for sustainable agricultural services. The long-term ambition is to develop a scalable model that can reach tens of thousands of farming households while contributing to forest protection.

Smallholder farmers in Kongo Central face multiple challenges, including limited access to quality seed and planting material, declining soil fertility, low agricultural productivity, and inadequate  agricultural services. Many households rely on expanding cultivation into newly cleared forest land to maintain production, contributing to forest loss.

In Kongo Central, many smallholder farmers face challenges linked to declining soil fertility, limited access to quality planting material, and the need to produce more from existing savannah farmland. One Acre Fund works with farmers to improve productivity through better inputs, practical training, agroforestry support, and incentives that encourage more sustainable land use. 

How we serve Farmers

One Acre Fund reaches farmers through locally based field teams and a network of community-based entrepreneurs, providing training, quality agricultural inputs, and ongoing farming support throughout the agricultural season.

• Access to Quality Inputs: Farmers gain access to improved seeds, planting material, and other agricultural inputs that are often otherwise difficult to buy in rural areas. Access to these inputs help farmers increase productivity and improve the reliability of their harvests.
• Farmer Training: Field staff provide practical training on effective agricultural practices, sustainable land management, agroforestry, and climate-resilient farming techniques. Farmers receive ongoing support throughout the season to help them adopt new practices successfully.
• Agroforestry and Forest Protection Incentives: Farmers receive seedlings, support to plant and maintain trees on their farms, and are rewarded for environmental stewardship through Payments for Environmental Services (PES). These incentives are provided in the form of vouchers that can be used to purchase agricultural inputs, helping farmers improve their productivity while encouraging tree survival, sustainable land management, and forest protection.

“Je plante parce que cela va m’aider à supporter ma famille. (I plant because it will help me support my family).” Tungua Ndomingiedi Alphons(Kuimba village, Kongo Central, DRC) 

Our impact in action

For Tungua Ndomingiedi Alphons, farming is not only about the land— it is about family.

Tungua lives in Kuimba, a village in Kongo Central province, where wide stretches of savannah shape daily life. Across the open landscape, fields are prepared under the hot sun, grasses move with the wind, and farming families depend on the soil for food, income, and hope for the future.

Each planting season carries the same question many smallholder farmers know well: will the harvest be enough to feed the household, meet daily needs, and support the people who depend on it.

Tungua works her land with that responsibility in mind. Like many farmers in Kongo Central, she farms in a context where access to quality inputs, reliable planting material, and practical agricultural support can be limited. The work is demanding, and the future is never guaranteed. But for Tungua, planting is an act of hope.

“I plant because it will help me support my family,” she says.

She has already seen the difference that improved planting material can make. “In the past, I would get 5–6 tubers per plant, but now, with the better seeds provided by Tolona, some plants give 8–10 tubers, and they are much larger.”

Through One Acre Fund’s DRC program, farmers like Tungua are receiving support to make their existing farmland more productive, especially in savannah areas. The program helps farmers adopt more sustainable agricultural practices, integrate trees into their farms, and build stronger livelihoods from the land they already cultivate.