Efficacy News’ Post

Agricultural sector stakeholders have today kicked-off a two -day conference to discuss financing the sector and appropriate models for funding agricultural activities in Kenya. https://lnkd.in/dkAAYaKN

https://lnkd.in/dxrwFmf4 The empowerment was carried out through 311 Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs) for smallholder farmers in Benue, Cross River, Delta, Ebonyi, Kaduna, Kebbi, and Niger states. USAID USAID - Bureau for Humanitarian Assistance USAID/Zambia USAID/Zambia USAID Takunda USAID Agricultural Trade Diversification Program Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada/ Agriculture et Agroalimentaire Canada Agriculture

Having traverse the Agric landscape of Nigeria, I and my team have come to four (4) main conclusions. That is: 1. We need a comprehensive private sector approach to make agriculture sustainable for small scale farmers. 2. We need to localized this comprehensive private sector approach as a food systems hub in every Local Government in Nigeria and Africa-wide. 3. We need to back this comprehensive approach up with a technology that will have 360° view on the network of comprehensive food systems. 4. We need to aggregate this smallholder farmers into a cooperative movement under a National Federation of AgricTrail Farmers' Cooperative Society Limited Our idea of a localized comprehensive food systems hub stems from a combination of several past initiative of successive government interventions in Agriculture development. These are: 1. Agriculture Development Project (ADP) with core approach as *Extension and Technical Services* 2. The Nigerian Agricultural and Cooperative Bank (NACB) of Nigeria with core focus on *funding agric cooperatives and promoting cooperative movement* 3. The commodity boards of the 70's focused on *standardising & regulating prices of farm produce* 4. DFFRI - Directorate of Food, Road & Rural Infrastructure focused on *construction of rural infrastructure such as schools, health clinics, and rural roads* 5. National Agricultural Land Development Authority (NALDA) focused on *acquiring Agricultural Land, developing it with agric infrastructure, and making it available to farmers.*

The Agriculture #Business Park – Kinshasa – DR Congo The DRC Agricultural Business Parks are a public-private partnership bringing together the DRC government, private investors and multilateral donor institutions. They are Special Economic Zone for agricultural providing basic infrastructure and services for the development of production and agricultural processing services and products. The Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) has created a unique investment opportunity for agribusiness companies and institutional investors. The Government’s plan to establish a series of Agricultural Business Parks across the country and is now inviting investors to join this innovative project, which will dramatically increase agricultural production in one of the most fertile countries in the world. The Agricultural Business Park model enables investors to tap into a ready-made network of support services, benefit from a range of fiscal incentives and https://lnkd.in/dM4_a49x #MINISTRIESDEPARTMENTSPUBLICAGENCIES

We remain dedicated to advancing Zambia's agricultural business sector. Over the years, we have put in substantial effort to develop and establish the agro-dealer network system to support the rural farming community. What began as informal networks has gradually been formalized, achieving recognition and registration from key government regulatory bodies. Today, it is rewarding to witness how the agro-dealer network has transformed into a dependable system for delivering inputs and services nationwide, while also becoming a critical employment sector for the country. There is still considerable potential for innovation and expansion, and this network is set to continue playing a key role in the growth and development of Zambia’s agricultural landscape.

The question ❓ you may want to ask is how does our concept cover all these. I can tell you it covers all and even more. Follow me: 1. The technology component is one major missing piece. We have added it with AgricTrail App and of course the value addition, farming, and storage machinery & equipment. 2. Our Extension Agents (EA's) will disseminate extension & technical information as well as monitor production practices. 3. The AgricTrail Farmers cooperative society that has the community, LGA, State, National, African components with be our Micro Finance Institution (MFI) through which farmers save & get loans. 4. Our localised food systems hubs serves as the sole off-take market for all the farmed produce by AgricTrail Farmers thus acting as the commodity board for price control to give commensurate fair pricing for inputs. It also brands all produce and value added products in one brand (AgricTrail®) with the name of the farmer and processor indicated. This ensures traceability and certifications. 5. As part of the 7 principles of the cooperative movement, the AgricTrail Farmers Cooperative will set aside funds for the development projects such as schools, health clinics, roads etc in their various communities and also have other business investments in those communities to create jobs and enhance livelihoods. 6. Greater Eredo Investments Ltd as a company will acquire Agricultural Lands and develop them into fish estates, poultry estates, piggery estates, ram ranches etc with housing provisions and allocate it to farmers on rent to own basis on the condition that they can't use it for other purposes in the future. 7. Central input supply of feeds, fertilizers, farming equipment, machinery lease etc. 8. Agricultural Research laboratory helps in food testing, produce sample analysis, etc 9. Also because of the centralised food systems, we are sure to have high volume of same quality as a result of standardized practices, we can explore the huge market potential of export markets.

Today, on National Ag Day, we honor the commitment of farmers worldwide.  USAID stands behind smallholder farms globally, exemplified by the Enabling Farmers for Agricultural Transformation (EFAT) project in Senegal and Ghana.  Implemented by Winrock as an associate award under the West Africa Farmer-to-Farmer program, the EFAT project has set out to change that dynamic, working with local agricultural service providers to ensure smallholder farmers have access to the technologies, information, training and services they need to become climate-smart producers in a rapidly changing world. The project held the first in a series of webinars to share approaches and strategies to expand the reach of agricultural extension and advisory services (EAS), with a larger goal of supporting USAID missions globally to strengthen EAS programming with emphasis on developing climate-responsive, inclusive practices and approaches. #AgDay24 #NationalAgDay #Agriculture #Development #SustainableAg #AgricultureandFarming #AgriBusiness #AgricultureInnovation   https://lnkd.in/eAW6WGGb 

DRC Agricultural Business Parks – Kinshasa – DR Congo The DRC Agricultural Business Parks are a public-private partnership bringing together the DRC government, private investors and multilateral donor institutions. They are Special Economic Zone for agricultural providing basic infrastructure and services for the development of production and agricultural processing services and products. The Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) has created a unique investment opportunity for agribusiness companies and institutional investors. The Government’s plan to establish a series of Agricultural Business Parks across the country and is now inviting investors to join this innovative project, which will dramatically increase agricultural production in one of the most fertile countries in the world. The Agricultural Business Park model enables investors to tap into a ready-made network of support services, benefit from a range of fiscal https://lnkd.in/d4BCPaj5 #BusinessParks #DRCongo #DRCAgriculturalBusinessParks

Even with its various challenges, agriculture plays a critical role in South Africa’s economy through its contribution to food security, employment and our gross domestic product from exports. In addition, agriculture can be utilised to make a lasting impact, with alignment, on both primary and secondary agriculture, to the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). These combine - when done correctly - to drive the promotion of rural development, creation of jobs, improvement of food security and contribution to long-term economic growth. Click to read the full article. Denzil Kennon https://lnkd.in/d-QjH7zm

From Zambia to Nigeria, African entrepreneurs are transforming the agriculture landscape. It’s so great to see these success stories highlighted, emphasizing the power of agriculture in driving economic growth and sustainability across the continent. https://lnkd.in/gxsbtXpM