ABC Fund invests $4.5m in African agri-businesses

The Agri-Business Capital Fund (“ABC Fund”) has made a significant investment in the agri-tech industry across Africa, totaling €4.21 million (about $4.5 million). It has financed food production businesses in Benin, Mali, and Uganda, as well as a microfinance institution based in Nigeria. 

Jerry Parkes, CEO of Injaro Investments, said, “We are proud to support smallholder farmers in Benin, Mali, Uganda, and Nigeria through these investments. This financing is vital to support the growth of these companies and to make their affiliated smallholder farmers more sustainable and efficient.”

Jean-Philippe de Schrevel, founder and managing partner of Bamboo Capital Partners, added, “The ABC Fund is fulfilling its mission to support smallholder farmers across sub-Saharan Africa with a series of new investments. These loans will help local farmers and processors increase their production and revenue, ultimately catalysing further economic growth and impact.”

• ANI, a raw cashew nut processor in Benin, has received a loan of €800 000 from the ABC Fund to purchase more raw cashew nuts and expand its operations. ANI has partnered with the Fédération Nationale des Producteurs d’Anacarde du Bénin to procure from 40 000 smallholder farmers and has plans to receive the BIO certification by the end of 2023. This certification will enable ANI to sell organic kernels at a premium price.
• Promo Fruits (PF), a major pineapple juice processor in Benin, has also received a loan of €800 000 from the ABC Fund to cover its working capital needs. The company plans to use the funding to import materials to manufacture juice cans and purchase equipment to create polytunnels for smallholder farmers. This equipment is expected to boost the production capacity and income of 750 farmers.
• Groupe Diakhate, a poultry feed manufacturer based in Mali, has received a loan of €450 000 from the ABC Fund to purchase feed raw materials, acquire new modern and efficient equipment, and launch a program to supply fertilizers and seeds to smallholder farmers. The investment will enable Groupe Diakhate to strengthen its relationships with farmer cooperatives representing 250 farmers and become more involved in its production process.
• Matale Hill Brothers Ltd (MHB), a company based in Uganda involved in the secondary processing of coffee, has received a credit facility of $257 200 from the ABC Fund to meet its working capital needs. The funding will be used to purchase coffee from smallholder farmers in Uganda and gradually increase the number of farmers they currently work with from 250 to twice this number.
• Grace and Mercy, a non-bank microfinance institution based in Nigeria, has received a $2 million credit facility from the ABC Fund. The funding will be used by the company to develop a formal agricultural financial product that will help economically disadvantaged women engaged in small trading and micro-productive activities. The ABC Fund loan is expected to enable the company to provide over 4,000 agricultural loans per funding cycle.

In addition to the new investments, the ABC Fund has provided follow-on financing to some of its investees. Anatrans, a raw cashew nut processor, received a second loan of €1 million for working capital. Socak Katana and Ecookim, two cocoa cooperatives based in Côte d’Ivoire, received renewed financing from the ABC Fund.

As of December last year, the ABC Fund has invested €45 million in 32 agribusinesses in 14 sub-Saharan African countries, positively impacting over 470 000 smallholder farmers.

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