Sanday Chongo Kabange, AfricaNews reporter in Lusaka, Zambia
IFC and Alliance for a Green Revolution in Africa have joined forces to unlock credit and financing for small-scale farmers and agribusinesses across sub-Saharan Africa. Agricultural lending in Africa is very low, one of the reasons hindering farmers' ability to achieve their full potential.
The partners’ collaboration will help expand or scale up AGRA’s existing innovative financing projects to reach more countries and key stakeholders in the African agricultural value chain. AGRA and IFC both pursue practical solutions to help alleviate poverty.
Specifically, the partnership between IFC and AGRA focuses on developing market-based incentives and tools to increase agricultural productivity.
For example, IFC and AGRA will work together in various ways to scale up AGRA’s partnerships with investors and national commercial banks to make loans available to farmers and agribusinesses Smaller seed companies will also be assisted to expand and finance agro-dealer networks to increase availability of farm inputs and expertise in rural areas, and support ‘fertiliser value chain’ financing, including regional procurement of fertiliser.
“AGRA’s partnership with IFC will harness the strengths of both organisations to scale up AGRA’s innovative programs across the agricultural value chain. We will improve the livelihoods of many more small-scale farmers and be able to do it sooner,” said Namanga Ngongi, AGRA’s President.
“The growth of the agricultural sector will strengthen the continent’s food security as well as create employment and raise living standards for millions of smallholder African farmers,” he added.
“The challenges to growing Africa’s agribusiness are great. But so are the opportunities. IFC is committed to helping Africa capitalise on these opportunities by playing a catalytic role of bringing a wide range of partners together to deliver practical market based solutions. Our alliance with AGRA is a very important step in this direction,” said Lars Thunell, Executive Vice President and CEO of IFC.
AGRA
AGRA has responded to the lack of access to credit for farmers and smaller agribusinesses in sub-Saharan Africa by working with financial institutions and investors to make low-interest loans available to key operators along the agricultural value chain—agro-dealers, fertiliser wholesalers, and seed companies – and to make financing available for warehouse receipt systems, farmer groups and agro-processing facilities.
AGRA’s work to increase farm productivity and incomes complements IFC’s support for private sector development through mobilising private capital and providing advisory and risk mitigation services to businesses and governments.
IFC and Alliance for a Green Revolution in Africa have joined forces to unlock credit and financing for small-scale farmers and agribusinesses across sub-Saharan Africa. Agricultural lending in Africa is very low, one of the reasons hindering farmers' ability to achieve their full potential.
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