Understanding the importance of cocoa, coffee, and cashew agroforestry systems in preserving biodiversity and ecosystem services remains limited in tropical and humid regions globally. The study seeks to evaluate plant species diversity within cocoa, coffee, and cashew agroforestry systems in comparison to natural forests, addressing a critical knowledge gap in these regions. We employed the line transect method to investigate various agroforest farmlands and natural forest reserves. Fifteen plots were established for each land use type, totaling 60 plots across cocoa, cashew, and coffee farms, as well as the natural forest. The forest reserve hosted the majority of shade trees, demonstrating greater density and basal area of native forest trees compared to the agroforest farmlands. These findings underscore the significance of implementing sustainable management practices in tropical agricultural landscapes and contribute to ongoing biodiversity conservation efforts within agricultural contexts.

Keywords: Tree, diversity, conservation, agroforest ecosystems