Agriculture is still widely practiced among family farmers in the State of Ceará. These farmers engage in intercropping to make better use of land and to manage water and nutritional resources more effectively. The cowpea (Vigna Unguiculata) is one of the most consumed and valued legumes due to its high protein and nutritional value. In the Northeast, cowpea is produced in association with maize, forming the most widespread production system among farmers in the region. However, due to competition, the cowpea does not develop and produce as well as in monoculture. Therefore, the search for alternative grasses to be intercropped with cowpea is an essential task. The aim of this study was to quantify soluble, structural, and reserve carbohydrates, as well as to analyze the activity of certain enzymes involved in sucrose metabolism, in order to evaluate the effects of crops in intercropping systems and determine which of these intercropping systems is most viable in semi-arid environments. The experiment was conducted in the field at the Center for Agricultural and Biodiversity Sciences. The area was divided into plots for the intercropping of species and for monoculture of cowpea and forage grasses. The forage grasses studied were maize, sorghum, brachiaria grass, and Panicum grass. Leaf samples were collected at 30, 60, and 90 days after the installation of the experiment. The contents of glucose, fructose, reducing sugars, sucrose, starch, and cellulose were analyzed, and the enzymatic activities of acid invertase and neutral invertase were determined. Regarding monosaccharides and reducing sugars, the cowpea and forage grass cultivars in the intercropping systems did not show significant changes compared to the sole crops at several sampling times. On the other hand, sucrose levels were higher in brachiaria grass and maize intercropped with cowpea. Starch content was significantly higher in the cowpea/brachiaria and cowpea/sorghum intercropping systems, while in the cowpea/Panicum system, a reduction in starch content was observed in the cowpea leaves. Cellulose content in cowpea intercropped with maize and sorghum was higher than in the respective sole crops from the sixtieth day of evaluation, whereas no changes were observed in the intercropping with brachiaria grass and Panicum grass. The effect of intercropping on acid invertase activity in cowpea leaves intercropped with maize and sorghum was not observed; however, the activities in both grasses were significantly increased at 90 days of evaluation. The acid invertase activity in cowpea leaves was higher when intercropped with brachiaria and Panicum. The neutral invertase activity was higher in the bean/panicum consortium, with the highest activity in beans at 30 and 60 days, and in panicum grass at 60 and 90 days after the experiment was established. The joint analysis (PCA) of the data showed that glucose accumulation was the main component (37.3%), followed by acid invertase activity (26.1%), cellulose (13.8%), and starch (8.98%). The variables glucose accumulation and starch were associated, indicating higher photosynthetic activity in species under intercropping, highlighting the bean/brachiaria consortium. On the other hand, an association between acid invertase activity and cellulose content can be understood as strengthening the cell wall, as observed primarily in the bean/panicum consortium. It is concluded that there are promising and alternative consortia to the bean/corn consortium that can be practiced in the Ceará semi-arid region