The summit brought together governments, development banks, financial institutions, agribusinesses, farmer organizations, investors, research organizations, and development partners to explore how Africa can mobilize and better align finance for food systems transformation.
remain stuck in the past. Despite donor funding and countless initiatives, the numbers have not shifted. This question is at the heart of #FINASSummit dialogue. That stagnation tells us one thing: we must do something differently."
By aligning policy, innovating finance models, and forging partnerships, we can unlock inclusive, de‑risked solutions for Africa’s food systems.
Programme
Overall, FINAS 2026 featured more than 50 plenary sessions, side events, deal rooms and masterclasses, with speakers drawn from African governments, the private financial sector, development finance institutions, farmer organizations, international organizations, research institutions and development partners. The programme emphasized practical financing solutions for policy alignment, inclusive finance, climate resilience, agrifood SMEs and investment mobilization across Africa.
1. Policy Alignment and Coordination
This track focused on creating coherent financing frameworks that support implementation of the Kampala CAADP Declaration and national agricultural investment plans.
Main sessions included:
- Continental Roundtable: Policy Alignment and Coordination for Financing the Kampala
CAADP Declaration - Using National Agrifood Systems Investment Plans (NASIPs) to mobilize, coordinate and monitor investments
- Launch of the Kenya National Agrifood Systems Investment Plan (NASIP) 2026–2030
Key discussion themes
- Harmonizing national and continental investment strategies
- Public finance reforms
- Improving accountability for agricultural expenditure
- Better coordination among governments, donors and private investors.
2. Innovative and Inclusive Finance Models
One of the largest streams examined how to unlock finance for farmers, cooperatives and agrifood SMEs. Panels and side events covered:
- Making Agricultural Development Funds work
- Public Development Banks and agricultural finance
- Wholesale lending for agricultural financial inclusion
- Agri-SME finance and prudential reforms
- Finance linked with agricultural skills development
- Blended finance mechanisms
- Cooperatives and rural financial services
3. Green, Climate and Resilient Finance
A major focus of FINAS 2026 was integrating climate resilience into agricultural finance. Major sessions included:
- Embedding Climate Risk Intelligence into Agricultural Value Chain Financing (plenary keynote)
- Carbon finance under Article 6.2 of the Paris Agreement
- Embedding insurance into agricultural lending
- Climate-resilient finance for crop and livestock systems
- Sustainable financing for resilient agrifood systems
- Financing feed and fodder systems
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Cold-chain financing and reducing food loss and waste
These sessions explored insurance, climate data, carbon markets, blended finance and innovative risk-sharing mechanisms that can attract private capital into climate-smart agriculture.
4. Trade, Investment and Partnerships
The final thematic stream examined how finance can strengthen regional markets and agricultural competitiveness. Topics included:
-
Trade and investment frameworks
- Regional value chains
- Public-private partnerships
- Cross-border investments
- Deal rooms connecting investors with agribusinesses
- Business-to-business matchmaking
- Scaling agricultural innovations
Special emphasis was placed on mobilizing domestic capital, strengthening African financial markets and reducing dependence on external aid.
Side events: extracts
02/07 Unlocking Sustainable Financing for Nutrition-Sensitive Food Systems: Evidence, Partnerships and Sub-national Level Innovations — Stock Take of Financial Flows for Food Systems (3FS)
financing instruments, and institutional will.
- Faraya Constance Zimudzi @FAO (#F𝗔𝗢, 𝗨𝗡): Nutrition-sensitive investment must be embedded into agrifood systems at country level.
- Ruth Okowa (#𝗚𝗔𝗜𝗡): Policies must translate into practice, ensuring SMEs can scale nutrition-focused solutions.
- Anna Tavina Eivin (#𝗙𝗔𝗢, 𝗨𝗡): Stronger institutional coherence is essential to sustain impact.
- Peter Chepata (𝗠𝗔𝗜𝗜𝗖): Financing instruments must be tailored to SME realities.
- Joseph Nderitu (𝗞-𝗨𝗡𝗜𝗧𝗬): Local financial institutions play a critical role in bridging access gaps.
- Blessings Mutheu (𝗜𝗻𝗰𝗼𝗳𝗶𝗻): Investors must see SMEs as viable partners in nutrition transformation.
- Samuel Ndonga (𝗙𝗔𝗢, 𝗨𝗡): Coordinated approaches are key to embedding nutrition into agrifood finance.
2/07 Beyond Donor Funding: Advancing AI-Enabled Finance for Africa’s Smallholder Farmers
At FINAS 2026, SAFIC convened a high-impact side event themed “Beyond Donor Funding: Sustainable Business Models and AI-Enabled Finance for Africa’s Smallholder Farmers,” bringing together leaders from government, academia, development, technology, and the private sector to explore practical pathways for transforming African agriculture.
Prof. Simon Ndiritu, The Center Director of SAFIC, opened by challenging participants to rethink the agricultural ecosystem, noting that Kenya does not lack technology or innovation. Rather, the real opportunity lies in integrating advisory services, finance, quality inputs, insurance, and market access into a coordinated system that delivers tangible value for farmers.
In his keynote remarks, Amb. Philip Thigo, Special Envoy on Technology, emphasized the importance of building trusted mechanisms for data exchange across the agricultural ecosystem. He encouraged stakeholders to begin with practical, scalable proof points, highlighting food systems as a compelling use case for shared data infrastructure and collaborative innovation.
Moderating the discussion, Richard Migwalla of Baobab Impact framed the conversation around three critical questions:
- Can we meet farmers at their point of need?
- Can we deliver these solutions sustainably?
- Can artificial intelligence improve the commercial equation for smallholder agriculture?
𝗔𝗴𝗿𝗶𝗰𝘂𝗹𝘁𝘂𝗿𝗮𝗹 𝗙𝗶𝗻𝗮𝗻𝗰𝗲 𝗧𝗲𝗰𝗵𝗻𝗶𝗰𝗮𝗹 𝗪𝗼𝗿𝗸𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗚𝗿𝗼𝘂𝗽 (𝗧𝗪𝗧)
At #FINAS2026, leaders from across finance, policy, and development have launched the 𝗔𝗴𝗿𝗶𝗰𝘂𝗹𝘁𝘂𝗿𝗮𝗹 𝗙𝗶𝗻𝗮𝗻𝗰𝗲 𝗧𝗲𝗰𝗵𝗻𝗶𝗰𝗮𝗹 𝗪𝗼𝗿𝗸𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗚𝗿𝗼𝘂𝗽 (𝗧𝗪𝗧,) a permanent mechanism designed to move evidence into policy, and policy into action.Key highlights from the speeches:
David Sajabi, 𝗙𝗶𝗻𝗮𝗻𝗰𝗲 & 𝗜𝗻𝘃𝗲𝘀𝘁𝗺𝗲𝗻𝘁 𝗘𝘅𝗽𝗲𝗿𝘁: “Good ideas must not remain reports. Reforms must be followed through.” He emphasized that success will be measured not by discussions, but by real change in agricultural lending.
Dr. Samuel Tiriongo, 𝗞𝗲𝗻𝘆𝗮 𝗕𝗮𝗻𝗸𝗲𝗿𝘀 𝗔𝘀𝘀𝗼𝗰𝗶𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻 Stressed the importance of evidence-based advocacy, better data, and exploring alternative collateral beyond land to unlock lending opportunities for farmers.
Titian Donda, 𝗠𝗮𝗻𝗮𝗴𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗗𝗶𝗿𝗲𝗰𝘁𝗼𝗿, 𝗣𝗼𝗹𝗶𝗰𝘆, 𝗔𝗰𝗲𝗹𝗶 𝗔𝗳𝗿𝗶𝗰𝗮 Reflected on the journey of collaboration, noting that fragmented approaches have slowed progress. The TWT is a product of partnership and coordination, designed to transform data into evidence and evidence into reforms.
Petra Jacoby, 𝗣𝗿𝗼𝗴𝗿𝗮𝗺 𝗗𝗶𝗿𝗲𝗰𝘁𝗼𝗿, 𝗔𝗴𝗿𝗶𝗰𝘂𝗹𝘁𝘂𝗿𝗲 𝗗𝗲𝘃𝗲𝗹𝗼𝗽𝗺𝗲𝗻𝘁, 𝗚𝗜𝗭 𝗞𝗲𝗻𝘆𝗮 Called the launch a reaffirmation of collective commitment. She highlighted the need for sound policies, reliable data, effective risk-sharing mechanisms, and strong coordination to build confidence among financial institutions and expand access to finance for farmers.
FINAS 2026 post-summit field visits
From cold storage to food processing, the FINAS 2026 post-summit field visits continued with a stop at ItalNovis Group SEZ Limited in Tatu City, Kenya.
Delegates explored the company's modern pasta manufacturing facility, gaining firsthand insight into the journey from raw materials to finished products. The visit demonstrated how technology, efficient production systems, and value addition are driving competitiveness in Africa's food manufacturing sector.
With roots dating back to the 1950s, ItalNovis Group reflects the impact of sustained industrial investment and innovation in building resilient agrifood value chains.
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