The Potential of African regional markets: Successes from SMEs and Smallholders

21 February2024. Colead, Innovation Series -Session 17.  The Potential of African regional markets: Successes from SMEs and Smallholders

• Program Links: English + French + Portuguese
• Biodata Links: English + French 
• More information is available on Agrinnovators.org, the website recently created by PAFO and COLEAD, brings together all the information relating to the Innovations Sessions, including company profiles and impact stories. The site also includes a forum for exchange and networking.

One of the key drivers of food systems transformation in Africa lies in the potential of African regional markets, where Small and Medium-sized Enterprises (SMEs) and smallholders can play an important role.

While there have been notable successes, challenges persist in unlocking the full potential of African
regional markets. A greater emphasis on deeper intraregional trade, cross-border investments in infrastructure and fostering “made in Africa” trade and industrialisation policies is key to the continent’s future prosperity and resilience to global financial, food-related, climatic and pandemic-related shocks.

Infrastructure deficits, regulatory complexities, and access to finance remain significant obstacles for SMEs and smallholders. Addressing these challenges requires a collaborative effort from governments, international organisations, and the private sector. Transformation can be achieved through improvements in farm-level productivity, inputs, mechanisation and post-harvest management driven by investment, innovation and technology within a coordinated and effectively executed policy framework.

• Andrew Ahiaku, Director and Head of Financial Sector, Aceli Africa
  
  Aceli Africa envisions SMEs leading the transformation towards a thriving, inclusive, and sustainable agriculture sector. Aceli's mission is to unlock the growth and impact of agricultural SMEs by bridging the gap between capital supply and demand. Building the market for agricultural SME finance in Africa will contribute to several of the UN's Sustainable Development Goals through improved livelihoods for farmers and workers, climate-smart and resilient agriculture, gender inclusion, and food security and nutrition. Agricultural SMEs need reliable access to finance to realize their growth and impact potential. However, Aceli’s original data confirms that risk in agri-SME lending is twice as high as other sectors while returns are 4-5% lower, limiting capital flows to  agricultural SMEs today.

Recording forthcoming