In this guest post, Alex Simuyandi of AgDevCo discusses approaches for financing the “missing middle” of African agribusinesses, and tells us more about the new Lending for African Farming Company.

There are many challenges that agribusiness in Africa face. Skilled and experienced management is a resource in short supply, as is access to affordable finance. With the latest UN numbers suggesting that more than 200 million individuals in Africa are chronically undernourished, and the FAO estimating that investment in sub-Saharan Africa is 11 times more effective in reducing poverty than investment in any other sector, there is a great demand for financers to take a frontline position to combat poverty and increase food security.

As one of the most active investors in small and medium agribusinesses in Africa today, we provide innovative financing to help these businesses grow and mature. At AgDevCo, we also work with each of its investees to develop their management capacity, and provide its portfolio companies with hands-on commercial agricultural and financial management support. Continue reading →