By George Kanyeki

Agri Frontier assists family owned and corporate agribusinesses attract investment funds for a range of requirements, including expansion capital, re-financing, and divestment.

We have an extensive network of more than 150 funding sources, including private equity, impact and developmental investors who invest a combination of equity, debt, and grant funding.

If your organisation requires assistance with fundraising, don’t hesitate to reach out and get in touch. We’re here to help.

Private Equity and DFIs
Private Equity (PE) and development finance institutions (DFIs) have been increasingly active in the agriculture sector, aiming to address key challenges and explore opportunities for sustainable growth and impact.
PE investors seek to create value in agriculture by implementing operational efficiencies, expanding market reach, and introducing innovative technologies to increase productivity and profitability.
DFIs prioritize investments in the agriculture sector to promote food security, poverty reduction, and rural development, particularly in low-income and emerging market countries.
Examples of PE investors and DFI’s we have worked with include Agri VIE, Phatisa, DOB Equity, Norfund, Metier, Adenia Partners, FMO, IFC, BII, Finnfund, Proparco, AgDevCo, BIO, responsibility among many others.

Grant Funding Opportunities for your organization

Grant funding provides crucial support for various initiatives aimed at improving agricultural productivity, sustainability, and rural development. Grant funding opportunities have several focus areas ranging from smallholder farmer support, climate smart agriculture, value chain development, sustainable land management among others.

Here is a selection of some interesting grant funding opportunities that your agribusiness could benefit from:

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develoPPP Classic

Funding programme of the German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ) aimed at medium-sized and large companies that want to invest sustainably in a developing or emerging country and expand their operational activities locally. Suitable projects receive technical and financial support of up to two million euros in public funding. See online here.

Eligibility: Your company must be privately owned, profit-oriented and registered in the EU, a member country of the European Free Trade Association (EFTA) or a country on the OECD-DAC list. In addition, your project must contribute to local sustainable development as defined by the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and go beyond a mere investment in your core business. Full list available online here

Deadline: 1st quarter: 15 February to 31 March; 2nd quarter: 15 May to 30 June; 3rd quarter: 15 August to 30 September; 4th quarter: 15 November to 31 December

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Global Innovation Fund

Innovation fund that supports innovators at all stages of their life cycle, from start-up and pilot testing through to larger scale implementation. Through grants, loans (including convertible debt) and equity investments ranging from $50,000 to $15 million, GIF supports innovations with the potential for social impact at a large scale, whether new technologies, business models, policy practices, technologies, or behavioural insights. See online here

Eligibility: Any type of organisation in any developing country may apply. This includes social enterprises, for-profit companies, non-profit organisations, government agencies, international organisations, and research institutions. See full criteria here.

Deadline: Applications are accepted on a rolling basis

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Development Innovation Ventures (DIV)

Grant funding for innovators and researchers to test new ideas, take strategic risks, build evidence of what works, and advance the best solutions.  See online  here.

Screening for participation: the self-screening questionnaire is available online here. Promising applications have some common threads, including:

• propose approaches that have the potential to be better than existing development practice,
• have or will obtain hard evidence of their impact,
• have a stellar team, and
• have credible plans to reach millions of people at the Bottom-of-the-Pyramid (BoP).

Deadline: Available on a rolling basis.

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The Agribusiness Challenge Fund

A challenge fund that offers direct financial support to address the resource flow barriers faced by SMEs looking to scale-up and, in turn, create and sustain employment opportunities for young women and men. Agribusiness SMEs will be eligible to receive grants between US$ 500,000 and US$ 2,500,000. See online here.

Eligibility:

• Be involved in the sector of focus i.e., agriculture.
• Be an existing for-profit Small or Medium-sized Enterprise.
• Be implementing business in at least one of the 20 focus countries in Africa.
• Be requesting financial support within the funding limits of US$ 500,000 and US$ 2,500,000.
• Be providing matching contribution of at least 30% of the total project cost.
• Have innovative, practical, and scalable businesses that aim to create work opportunities for young women and men, young people with disabilities or refugee youth.

Deadline: Rolling call for proposals open from 18 March 2024 to 22 November 2024, with three application harvest periods in between.