National Initiatives
for Sustainable &
Climate Smart Oil
Palm Smallholders
(NISCOPS)
NISCOPS: Sustainable Palm Oil Solutions at Scale
Millions of smallholder farmers and workers worldwide make their livelihoods in the palm oil sector, which contributes to local employment, gross domestic product (GDP), food security, and trade balance in producing countries. Given its productivity as an highly-efficient source of edible oil, palm has spread rapidly throughout the tropics.
Ensuring sustainable production and market access for smallholders who produce 25-40 % of global palm oil can help the sector address sustainability challenges. IDH and Solidaridad believe the solution relies on collaboration. Together with governments in countries that produce or consume palm oil, they developed the National Initiatives for Sustainable & Climate Smart Oil Palm Smallholders (NISCOPS), an approach that enables producing countries to contribute to the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and the Paris Agreement, while simultaneously improving the livelihoods of smallholder farmers and workers.
NISCOPS brings a variety of stakeholders together with a goal of creating a supply chain that is inclusive, sustainable and scalable, with an emphasis on smallholder inclusivity. The programme is active in producer countries Colombia, Ghana, Indonesia, Malaysia and Nigeria, with market interventions in Europe and Asia, including India.
We are continually seeking partnerships with governments, companies, researchers and other civil society actors to apply our comprehensive approach to sustainable palm oil landscapes and supply chains.
Vision
Landscapes where oil palms are grown and managed sustainably, and smallholders measurably benefit from their inclusion in oil-palm markets.
Global NISCOPS overview
Learn about efforts at global level
NISCOPS strives for impact in three areas
Improved land use
Better incomes
Inclusive markets
NISCOPS in Practice
Browse the photo gallery for a closer look at NISCOPS in practice!
News & Updates
In a country with one of the highest deforestation rates in the world, communities in Nigeria are stepping forward to protect local forests and fight...
Project Aims & Achievements
NISCOPS aims to shape long-lasting, positive impacts for smallholders by ensuring market access, creating an enabling policy environment, and contributing to climate resilience and environmental protection.
The programme works ‘up’ from field implementation and learning, and ‘down’ from policy and market drivers, to create a positive feedback loop between production practice and policy implementation. Activities at field, market and policy level are all designed to contribute to scaling up positive social and environmental impact in the palm oil sector.
NISCOPS aims to train over 125,000 smallholder oil palm producers in sustainable practices, bringing 513,500 hectares of farm under sustainable management.
Global NISCOPS Targets 2028
- 126,784 farmers and workers trained (including processors)
- 121,725 people with improved income/improved yield
- 513,500 ha of farm area under sustainable management/adaptive practices
- 496,546 ha of forest area under sustainable forest protection/management
Partner with us!
NISCOPS is a unique programme with a proven track record in piloting and scaling sustainability solutions in the palm oil sector. Smallholder inclusion is core to the production of climate-smart, deforestation-free, responsible palm oil.
Achieving this goal requires partnering with key stakeholders to drive forward the uptake of sustainable palm oil in producing and consuming countries and markets.
Learn how you can support sustainable palm oil production here
NISCOPS works with governments, companies, civil society organizations and researchers on sustainable oil palm landscapes and inclusive palm oil supply chains. Check out the contact details below to connect with us.
Our programme partners
NISCOPS is a joint programme of IDH and Solidaridad, funded by the Netherlands Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MoFA), and Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office of the UK (FCDO). The programme started in 2019 with a 10-year commitment by the Dutch government to address the development challenges faced by smallholders in the palm oil sector. The UK government joined the programme in 2024 for the second phase (2024-2028).
IDH is a global organisation that brings together public and private stakeholders to make agricultural markets more sustainable and inclusive. We work with partners to tackle challenges in global and local value chains, including climate change, unfair wages, inequality and gender disparities. Our skilled employee base consists of 300+ conveners and experts, working in 15+ countries with 1000+ partners.
Solidaridad is an international civil society organisation with 55 years of experience in developing solutions to make communities more resilient — from our early roots supporting communities in Latin America to our current work fostering more sustainable supply chains. We currently work in over 40 countries, on five continents, through seven independently supervised regional offices.
