Financing Agriculture Sustainably Conference (Finas 2024)

27 - 28 March 2024. Financing Agriculture Sustainably Conference (Finas 2024)

Partners such as GIZ, FSD-Kenya, African Fertilizer and Agribusiness Partnership (AFAP), AGRA, National Research Fund, IFPRI, Tegemeo Institute, Association of Fintechs in Kenya, Association of Microfinance Institutions of Kenya, Fertilizer Association of Kenya, Apollo Agriculture, Kenya Union of Savings and Credit Co-operatives, SNBX Capital, contributed to this conference and transformation of the Agricultural sector in Kenya.

The financing ecosystem in most of sub-Sahara Africa has barely scratched the surface when it comes to the development of demand driven agricultural financing solutions. Subse- quently, there is a converse relationship between Agriculture finance investment and the sectors’ contribution to the GDP. The void comes along with some challenges that span managing risks, high transaction costs in dealing with large number of small farmers, and micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs), lack of expertise to backstop agricultural loan portfolios, amongst others.

Agri-FinTechs transform farmers’ access to rural credit, solve payment challenges in largely cash-based econo- mies, help improve commercial experiences for both agricultural enterprises and their customers, and scale the understanding and mitigation of the industry risks. 

Extracts of the program

Scaling financial access through Digitalization of the Agriculture Value Chain 

The aim is to highlight the need for AVC digitalization, to scale access to agriculture investment thereby enabling an inclusive digital economy. The discussion will focus on the current environment and existing frameworks for digitalization and articulate ideas on how we can make the agricultural digital economy more vibrant.

Positioning Research to better Support Decision-making on Sustainable Investments and Financing of the agricultural sector. 

Data is critical for supporting evidence-based decisions on performance management, monitoring and evaluation, research, and policy. Poor access to useable and shareable data is the biggest drawbacks to ensuring better decision making on prioritizing funding of agricultural research. The remarks will seek to highlight the role research and data in making sound investment decisions.

Sustainably Funding Agriculture Research. 

The session seeks to prescribe mechanisms to fund agricultural research adequately and sustainably. Considerations will include support for basic and fundamental research, upscaling and outscaling research outcomes and commercializing research outputs as a funding mechanism.

The Hidden Middle: Financing agricultural MSME’s 

 This session aspires to bring out the role of the private sector in the achievement of a financial system that delivers value for need and takes into consideration gender inclusivity. Examples of ongoing initiatives aimed at increasing private sector participation will also be highlighted.

Financing Infrastructure for Agribusiness Progression 

The session will look into approaches and benefits of supporting infrastructural development as a key driver of agribusiness in Africa. It will provide examples of success stories primarily facilitating trade in Kenya and within the EAC region.