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Digitizing the Base of the Pyramid: The Impact of Bringing Digital Finance to Last-Mile Farmers
Only 5 percent of Rwanda’s dairy farmers have access to credit, due in part to their lack of proof of income and inability to build a financial history. That’s why N-Frnds, a cloud-based software platform, partnered with the Rwandan government to digitize the milk collection process. Alyssa Mesich of N-Frnds recounts how the partnership has impacted milk production and boosted financial inclusion – results that suggest the vast potential impact of digitizing value chain-based financial services for last-mile farmers globally.
- Categories
- Agriculture, Inclusive Fintech, Technology
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Press release: Cold chain technology proving a cool choice for impact investors
AgTech and ‘first mile’ distribution innovator InspiraFarms has just announced the successful closing of €2.5 million Series-A 2 equity investment. The latest round of investment will enable the B-Corp to expand its operations, offering solar-powered cold storage technology and asset financing to a broader base of perishable food producers and distributers across the developing world.
- Categories
- Agriculture, Investing, Technology
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This Agricultural Guide On A Phone Helps Increase Developing-World Farmers’ Yields
“A lot of smallholder farmers are very poor and they wait until it’s too late because they don’t want to spend the money,” says Leesa Shrader, who leads work on DigiFarm for Mercy Corps, one of several groups developing the platform. “The cow dies and they’ve lost an $800 asset, which can be devastating to the families. With DigiFarm, they can pull the training when they want it.”
- Categories
- Agriculture, Technology
- Region
- Sub-Saharan Africa
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For India’s Farmers It’s Agtech Startups, Not Government, That Is Key
It’s been quite a challenge in recent decade in Indian agriculture, starved of financial resources and continuing neglect by the government, and is likely to become more difficult over the next few decades as weather patterns, available water and growing seasons shift further.
- Categories
- Agriculture, Technology
- Region
- South Asia
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Crowdfarming is being used to bring Somalia’s livestock market into the digital economy
In 2017 alone, livestock loss has ranged from 20%-40% in the southern regions and 40%-60% in the north, according to the Food and Agriculture Organization. This threatens the livelihood of the animal farmers and hinders their ability to regularly trade in markets. But a Sweden-based startup wants to change this by creating a tech-powered livestock market that is open all year round.
- Categories
- Agriculture, Technology
- Region
- Sub-Saharan Africa
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Making Tech Work: How Local Know-How Can Improve Digital Financial Inclusion Solutions in Challenging Markets
Technology can eliminate inefficiencies, collect valuable information and expand access to critical services. But technological solutions often replace indigenous, ad-hoc approaches which – though they may appear incomplete and messy – reflect the knowledge and relationships of the parties involved. Asa Nyaga at BFA explores how Farmerline, a Ghana-based tech company serving smallholders, aligned the product design of a new app with the ideas and understandings of its target users.
- Categories
- Agriculture, Inclusive Fintech, Technology
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Technology is helping middle-class Nigerians turn to farming without getting their hands dirty
More than 80% of farmers in Nigeria are small holder farmers who cultivate a few acres of land to feed their family and also sell produce to earn a living. Yet, while the government has failed—getting middle-class Nigerians to take up farming—thanks to technology, a crop of new agro-tech startups are finding success.
- Categories
- Agriculture, Technology
- Region
- Sub-Saharan Africa
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The Power of SMS: How Simple Texts Can Provide a Lifeline for Farmers
Last month, nearly 3,000 coconut farmers in Mindanao received a text from FarmerLink warning that conditions were ripe for infestation by two devastating insect pests, allowing them to take preventive action. That's just one way SMS messages are being used by FarmerLink, a rural advisory service formed by Grameen Foundation and other partners. The foundation's Gigi Gatti explains how the project, which also connects farmers with buyers and other services, is impacting smallholders 18 months after its launch.
- Categories
- Agriculture, Technology
Parent Organization
