Africa: Africa's Food Future Depends On Financing Smallholders, Youth and Women - IFAD

What the report says

Africa’s drive to improve food security and grow its agricultural economy will depend heavily on whether smallholder farmers, youth-led enterprises and women-owned businesses can get better access to finance, according to comments reported by The New Times and attributed to the International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD). The article says IFAD Vice President Geraldine Mukeshimana made the remarks in Kigali during the Africa Food Systems Forum, which ended there last week.

The reported discussion focused on the gap between Africa’s agricultural potential and the financing available to people at the “first mile” of food production. Mukeshimana said the continent has land, water and people, but that many farmers and rural businesses remain outside formal credit systems and are highly exposed to climate shocks. She also emphasized that finance alone is not enough unless it is paired with technical support, stronger financial skills and investment-ready businesses.

The article says IFAD signed several agreements at the forum. These include a $200 million blended finance facility with Equity Group for Rwanda, Kenya, Uganda and Tanzania; a $21 million package with Bank of Kigali for farmers’ organisations; and a $10 million facility with AgDevCo Ventures for very small businesses in East Africa. According to the report, the goal is to reduce risk for lenders, attract private capital and show that climate and agricultural lending can become commercially viable over time.

The piece also notes wider infrastructure needs such as storage, transport, cold chains and processing, saying these are important to reduce post-harvest losses and connect producers to markets.