Connect with us
Anglostratits

Business

African Development Bank Group receives $14 million in first funding allocation under Global Agriculture and Food Security Program’s new private sector financing window

Published

6 months ago

on

Agriculture

The Global Agriculture and Food Security Program (GAFSP) has announced the first allocation from its new private sector financing window to the African Development Bank Group (www.AfDB.org), providing $14 million in de-risking capital that aims to unlock $200 million from the private sector to enhance food security in low-income countries.

GAFSP provides financial and technical resources—including grants, blended concessional finance, technical assistance, and advisory services—in the world’s poorest countries to support projects across the agriculture value chain.

The new window, the Business Investment Financing Track, was launched in 2024 as GAFSP’s second-generation private sector financing window. It blends the program’s grants and concessional finance with financing from multilateral development banks to catalyze private sector financing for smallholder farmers, producer groups, agribusinesses, and start-ups.

This first allocation from the track will go towards the establishment of an Agro-Inputs Risk Sharing Facility — a $200 million fund to be hosted by the Bank, with a $10 million tranche of derisking capital. An additional $4 million in grant resources will support technical assistance designed to catalyse up to $200 million in private-sector lending for small- and medium-sized agricultural companies in Ethiopia, Uganda, Tanzania, Malawi, and Zambia. The Agro-Inputs Risk Sharing Facility will work to incentivise local banks to extend credit to agro input suppliers

Smallholder farmers and early-stage agrifood businesses in fragile and low-income countries struggle to access credit, insurance, and investment capital due to perceived high risks, constraining their ability to meet rising food demand.

The Agro-Inputs Risk Sharing Facility, to be implemented by the African Trade & Investment Development Insurance — a pan-African institution providing political risk and credit insurance to investors — will address this gap by providing guarantees to financial institutions, a risk-sharing move to encourage commercial banks to lend to these underserved agribusinesses.

With the establishment of the Agro-inputs Risk Sharing Facility, we are planting the seeds of a more food-secure Africa

“This first allocation demonstrates the appetite for funders to work together in this new model to solve an age-old challenge of finance for smallholder farmers: risk,” said Natasha Hayward, Program Manager for the Global Agriculture and Food Security Program.

“By blending GAFSP donor funds with multilateral development and commercial finance, every Program dollar will leverage many more in private investment, multiplying the positive impact on food security and resilience to rising temperatures and unpredictable weather patterns.”

The financing will help expand access to certified seeds, organic fertilizers, soil enhancers, mechanisation, and other inputs that help agribusinesses to withstand extreme and prolonged heat, water scarcity and other impacts of extreme climates. More than 1.5 million smallholder farmers and 500 agro-dealers and cooperatives are expected to benefit.

“By targeting agro-input dealers and smallholder farmers, this facility intends to strengthen the entire value chain, from input supply to market access, building food systems able to withstand market shocks, including and especially environmental pressures. With the establishment of the Agro-inputs Risk Sharing Facility, we are planting the seeds of a more food-secure Africa,” said Philip Boahen, African Development Bank Coordinator of the GAFSP.

This debut allocation aligns with broad-based African commitments to transform food systems, including the Comprehensive Africa Agriculture Development Programme (https://apo-opa.co/4o51UOB) and the Kampala Declaration on Accelerating the Implementation of Africa’s Food Systems Transformation.

Distributed by APO Group on behalf of African Development Bank Group (AfDB).

Home  Facebook

Related Topics:
Continue Reading
Advertisement

Business

Canada–Africa Financing Forum to Convene Investors and Decision-Makers in Cape Town – May 14, 2026

Published

14 hours ago

on

April 29, 2026

By

Ateau Zola

This timely Forum comes on the heels of commitments announced by Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney, deepening Canada–Africa commercial ties and expanding investment partnerships

TORONTO, Canada, April 29, 2026/APO Group/ –The Canada–Africa Chamber of Business (https://CanadaAfrica.ca) will convene investors, financiers, policymakers, and industry leaders in Cape Town on May 14, 2026 for the Canada–Africa Financing Forum—a high-level platform focused on unlocking capital and accelerating deal flow across African markets.

Registration is open (http://apo-opa.co/4vZN6oV)

This timely Forum comes on the heels of commitments announced by Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney, deepening Canada–Africa commercial ties and expanding investment partnerships. The program connects leaders from venture capital, private equity, and institutional investors to examine where capital is moving—and where the next opportunities lie—supported by Canadian project partners with proven capacity to deliver on-the-ground.

Delegates will engage directly with finance and investment decision-makers, following the program opening, featuring messages from President Cyril Ramaphosa and Prime Minister Mark Carney, in addition to high-level Ministerial representation.

This Forum is about capital deployment, not just conversation

“This Forum is about capital deployment, not just conversation,” said Garreth Bloor, President of the Canada–Africa Chamber of Business. “We are convening investors, institutions, and project leaders who are actively shaping transactions across Africa—and connecting them directly with Canadian partners who are ready to work together.”

The Canada–Africa Financing Forum reflects the Chamber’s role as a privately financed, market-led platform advancing Canada-Africa trade and investment through world-class networking and information-sharing events.

Why Attend

  • Direct access to active dealmakers and capital allocators
  • Insights into where capital is being deployed and key players delivering major projects
  • Opportunities to build partnerships across Canada and African markets
  • Participation in a curated, high-level environment focused on execution

Secure Your Place

Space is limited and demand is strong.

Apply to secure your place (http://apo-opa.co/4vXb9oz)

Read More and View the Program (http://apo-opa.co/4vZN6oV)

Distributed by APO Group on behalf of The Canada-Africa Chamber of Business.

Continue Reading

Business

ORUN and 1xBET Partner to Support a Dynamic Creative Africa

Published

20 hours ago

on

April 29, 2026

By

MIR Holding

During the MASA 2026 edition, held from April 11 to 18, 2026, ORUN and 1xBET implemented the We Champion Talent program, an initiative aimed at promoting African talent and advancing the development of Cultural and Creative Industries (CCIs)

ABIDJAN, Ivory Coast, April 28, 2026/APO Group/ –As part of the Innovation Village co-organized with MASA at the Palais de la Culture in Abidjan from April 14 to 18, ORUN (https://ORUN.Africa) announces the rollout of its partnership with 1xBET to support a creative Africa that is structuring itself, professionalizing, and scaling across the continent.

We aim to demonstrate that it is possible to support African talent, narratives, and creative ecosystems over the long term, with ambition and consistency

Designed as a space of convergence between heritage, innovation, and knowledge transmission, the Innovation Village features scenography crafted by Ivorian artisans, a program of panels and masterclasses on creative industries, an immersive experience produced by Orun Studios, and a major institutional highlight on April 17. Its narrative platform is built around three pillars: memory, structure, and transmission. The initiative aims to position cultural and creative industries as an economic driver for the continent.

“The Innovation Village was conceived as an act of construction. By partnering with organizations such as 1xBET, we aim to demonstrate that it is possible to support African talent, narratives, and creative ecosystems over the long term, with ambition and consistency,” said Habyba Thiero, CEO of Africa Currency Network and President of ORUN.

This vision aligns with ORUN’s broader ambition to produce, structure, and internationalize African creative industries through events, content, and strategic partnerships.

Distributed by APO Group on behalf of ORUN, part of African Currency Network (ACN).

 

Continue Reading

Business

MIR Holding Reaffirms Its Commitment to African Creative Industries Alongside ORUN at Marché des Arts du Spectacle Africain d’Abidjan (MASA) 2026

Published

20 hours ago

on

April 29, 2026

By

MIR Holding

More than event support, this partnership reflects a commitment to backing platforms capable of structuring value chains, increasing the visibility of talent, and fostering the emergence of strong African creative infrastructures

ABIDJAN, Ivory Coast, April 28, 2026/APO Group/ –On the occasion of MASA 2026, held from April 11 to 18 in Abidjan, MIR Holding (https://MIRHolding.odoo.com) reaffirmed its commitment to supporting the growth of African creative industries by partnering with ORUN as part of the Innovation Village, hosted at the Palais de la Culture in Abidjan. This presence reflects a clear intention to support the scaling of cultural and creative industries so they can fully contribute to job creation and value generation across the continent.

 

Co-organized by ORUN and MASA, the Innovation Village brought together over several days scenography designed by Ivorian artisans, a program of panels and masterclasses dedicated to creative industries, an immersive experience produced by Orun Studios, and a key institutional highlight on April 17.

At MIR Holding, we believe that Africa’s future will also be shaped by its ability to structure its narratives, its talent, and its creative value chains

Built around three pillars — memory, structure, and transmission — the initiative carried a renewed ambition for culture: positioning it as a concrete lever for economic structuring and African projection.

By supporting this initiative, MIR Holding aligns with a broader dynamic aimed at strengthening connections between creation, entrepreneurship, content, youth, and growth ecosystems. More than event support, this partnership reflects a commitment to backing platforms capable of structuring value chains, increasing the visibility of talent, and fostering the emergence of strong African creative infrastructures. MIR Holding stands among the main partners of the Village, alongside Africa Currency Network and other stakeholders engaged in this vision.

“With ORUN, we are not only seeking to make culture visible. We aim to help provide it with a framework, a reach, and a trajectory. What is at stake here is the continent’s ability to better transform its creative energy into sustainable value, real opportunities, and influence,” said Habyba Thiero, CEO of Africa Currency Network and President of ORUN.

Mouhamed Dieng, President of MIR Holding, added: “Supporting Africa’s creative industries is not about backing a secondary sector. It is about investing in one of the continent’s most powerful spaces for storytelling, youth, innovation, and competitiveness. At MIR Holding, we believe that Africa’s future will also be shaped by its ability to structure its narratives, its talent, and its creative value chains.”

Distributed by APO Group on behalf of MIR Holding.

 

Continue Reading

Trending