Digital Agriculture in LMICs - 27 Jul #24
Mastercard, Rabobank and dfcu Bank leverage FarmPass to provide agri DFS in Uganda, GSMA announces agritech accelerator cohort, WEF publishes digital ag learnings from India
17/07/23
GSMA announces cohort members of GIZ-funded Agritech Accelerator
The GSMA AgriTech programme has announced the ten start-ups (the cohort members) that will participate in its Agritech Accelerator supported by German Development Cooperation (GIZ). The accelerator will support seven agritechs with solutions including supply chain management, Agri DFS, digital advisory, market linkages and smart farming. Cohort members are eProd Solutions (Cote d’Ivoire), OKO Insurance (Mali), Esoko and Traderex (Ghana), Farsmpeak and Winich Farms (Nigeria), Jokolante (Senegal), MooMe (Tunisia), ZR3I (Egypt), and Greenovator (Cambodia). Over the next two years, the Accelerator will provide the start-ups with tailored technical assistance to help them grow in their markets, including User Experience (UX) research, Monitoring, Evaluation, and Learning (MEL) support, and investment readiness support. The GSMA launched a call for concept notes in December 2022 to identify suitable agritechs and invited companies from eligible countries in Africa, Asia, and Latin America to apply.
20/07/23
Mastercard, dfcu Bank and Rabo Partnerships join forces to provide DFS to Ugandan farmers
Uganda’s dfcu Bank, Mastercard, and Rabo Partnerships, as subsidiary of Rabo Bank, have announced a partnership to support the digitalisation of agricultural value chains and provide financial services to smallholder farmers. The partnership will leverage MasterCard’s FarmPass. Part of Mastercard's Community Pass services, FarmPass is an app-based interoperable solution that establishes a digital identity for commercial farmers. The solution digitises payments and farmer financial histories, increasing market linkages and access to financial services. First piloted in Kenya in 2015, Farm Pass is now also in operation in Tanzania and India, besides Uganda. With the FarmPass app, dfcu Bank, aims to extend financial services to farmers and farmer organisations that were previously difficult to reach. Over the next five years, the collaboration will aim to register 1.5 million smallholder farmers in Uganda.
21/07/23
Applications open for 2023 AYuTe Africa Challenge Nigeria
NGO Heifer International has opened applications for the 2023 AYuTe (Agriculture, Youth, Technology) Africa Challenge Nigeria. The competition is an opportunity for young Nigerian agritech innovators to learn with peers, and partner with a growing network of local governments, innovation hubs, academic institutions, and development organisations. The challenge is implemented by Wennovation Hub, a business development company that supports startups and teams across emerging sectors. Up for grabs are up to USD 20,000 for the top three winners. AYuTe challenges are held in Ethiopia, Nigeria, Senegal, and Uganda, besides Kenya. The deadline for applications is 21 March 2023. Through a regional AYuTe competition, Heifer International awards up to US$1.5 million each year to leading growth-stage agritech innovators across Africa. The application period will be open from 17 to 31 July 2023.
25/07/23
Faad Network launches agritech accelerator in India
India’s early stage venture fund Faad Network has launched a new accelerator programme dubbed AgriManch. The accelerator, a 12-week cohort program, will provide funding, mentorship and partnership building support to agritech start-ups in India. Precision agriculture, automation and agri/fintech are key areas of interest for the programme. Start-ups will receive funding of up to INR 2,500,000 (USD (30,500). Perspective participants can find more information on the programme and apply here.
20/07/23
Good reads: WEF’s learnings on digital agriculture from the state of Telangana, India
The World Economic Forum (WEF) has published a new report about India’s digital agriculture sector Scaling Agritech at the Last Mile: Converging Efforts for Farmers’ Prosperity. The report focuses on the work of the World Economic Forum’s Artificial Intelligence for Agriculture Innovation (AI4AI) in the Indian state of Telangana. The Government of Telangana became the first in India to adopt this framework under Project Saagu Baagu ( “agricultural advancement”), in partnership with WEF, supported by the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation and implemented by global development organisation Digital Green. The report captures the context, theory of change, approach and outcomes of the first phase of Project Saagu Baagu, which has to date enabled 7,000 chilli farmers to access AI-based advisories, soil testing, produce quality testing and e-commerce. Telangana, where agriculture contributes 18.3% to the state’s gross value, targets to deliver agritech services to 100,000 farmers by 2025. The WEF study offers recommendations to governments, bilateral and multilateral institutions and the private sector to scale technologies in a public-private-partnership (PPP) mode.
👉 Dear reader, thank you again for your support! It’s time for AgrisTechia to take a short summer break.. We will be back on 22 August.