Kenya Launches Revolutionary US$ 50 Million Farm Programme

A major new partnership was launched May 6th, 2008, to provide small-holder farmers and small agricultural enterprises in Kenya with the financing they need to break out of poverty and build viable businesses. The Alliance for a Green Revolution in Africa (AGRA), in partnership with Equity Bank Limited, the International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD) and the Kenya Ministry of Agriculture signed an agreement for a loan facility of US$50 million (3 billion Kenyan shillings) to accelerate access to affordable financing for 2.5 million farmers and 15,000 agricultural value chain members such as rural input shops, fertilizers and seed wholesalers and importers, grain traders and food processors. This timely development comes at a time when Kenyan farmers are still grappling with the effects of post 2007 elections turmoil which displaced many of them and their workers as well as the problem of inaccessibility to affordable seeds and fertilizer. The programme fills a gap in financial services for the farm sector and is expected to do much to alleviate the effects of the global food crisis on Kenya.

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