Digital Agriculture in LMICs -27 Jun #61

India’s new government expedites digital agriculture plans; Nigeria’s Crop2Cash confirms funding; Kenya’s Digicow partners with Mastercard for digital farmer finance

20/06/24

Zambia’s eMsika to bring market linkage platform to four new markets

Zambian agritech startup eMsika, a market linkages platform for farmers, agro-dealers and suppliers in the poultry sector, is planning to expand to Tanzania, Nigeria, Egypt and Zimbabwe. Established in 2016, the agritech provides to farmers inputs, such as chicks, feed, and vaccines, as well as on-farm visit support via its FarmHouse app. The agritech focuses on farmers operating in urban areas and it has to date trained 8,000 farmers. According to Disrupt Africa, eMsika has raised a total of USD 150,000 since it started, and is currently raising USD 50,000 for expanding its workforce and marketing and to invest in technology. The company is backed by the 2023 “SAIS Investment Readiness Programme 2023 – Farmed Animal Tech Start-ups” by the German Development Agency (GIZ).

20/06/24

India’s new government expedites digital agriculture mission with $336M boost

Following the third term election of Prime Minister Modi, the Government of India is looking to expedite the establishment of the so called Digital Agriculture Mission. According to reports, the government is allocating INR 28 billion (USD 336 million) to the mission as part of its first 100-day agenda. The mission was launched in September 2021 but its rollout was delayed due to the pandemic. Its original aim was to encourage and speed up projects based on cutting-edge technologies, including AI, blockchain, remote sensing, robots, and drones.

Under the latest plans, the mission will establish by 2026 a nationwide farmers registry, crop sown registry, and georeferencing of village maps. The plan is for every farmer to get a unique ID, which will enhance the delivery of government-led schemes supporting the agricultural sector such as the minimum income support scheme Pradhan Mantri Kisan Samman Nidhi (PMKISAN) and the insurance scheme Pradhan Mantri Fasal Bima Yojana (PMFBY). In addition, farmer IDs will allow better delivery of agricultural digital financial services (Agri DFS) such as of farmer loans and insurance. Several districts in the states of Uttar Pradesh, Maharashtra, Gujarat, Punjab and Tamil Nadu have reportedly started pilots to generate farmers IDs.

22/06/24

Nigerian agritech Crop2Cash confirms $350K raise

Nigerian agritech Crop2Cash has confirmed raising USD 350,000 from Village Capital. The investment, which was finalised in April, comes from Village Capital’s Reducing Inequalities Investment Facility, which is supported by the “Micro and Small Enterprise Fund” (MASSIF) of Dutch Entrepreneurial Development Bank FMO. Crop2Cash stated that it has to date raised USD 2.8 million in credit for smallholder farmers in Nigeria. The startup also said that it has to date supported 400,000 farmers. Founded in 2018, Crop2Cash digitises the agri value chain for agribusinesses, enabling the provision of agri digital financial services (Agri DFS) for farmers. Its CashCard enables farmers to receive digital payments, and to pay for inputs, access credit, and obtain insurance. Through Crop2Cash, farmers can open bank accounts in two minutes using basic feature phones and USSD technology.   

24/06/24

Digicow to leverage Mastercard Farm Pass for digital farmer finance

Kenyan agritech DigiCow has announced a partnership with Mastercard’s FarmPass to provide a range of digital financial services to farmers. DigiCow will create and maintain digital transaction records via FarmPass enabling farmers to build a financial history, demonstrate their creditworthiness and secure loans at more favourable terms. The Farm Pass platform will also integrate farmers with a network of creditors, input providers, and suppliers, creating a robust digital ecosystem.

Part of Mastercard's Community Pass services, FarmPass is an app-based interoperable solution that establishes a digital identity for commercial farmers. The solution digitises payments and farmer financial histories, increasing market linkages and access to financial services. First piloted in Kenya in 2015, Farm Pass is now also in operation in India, Tanzania, Ethiopia and Uganda. Previously Mastercard said that it plans to bring Community Pass services to 15 million farmers in Africa by 2027. Digicow Africa LTD was established in 2018, and is formerly known as FarmingTech Solutions. It has a suite of digital solutions such as the DigiCow Dairy App, which provides advisory to dairy farmers and digitises farming records, and the Tegea IVR solution, an extension platform designed to support farmers who predominantly use basic feature phones.

25/06/24

OKO enables agri insurance payments from West African diaspora

Agri-focused insurtech OKO Insurance has launched a new service that enables the West African diaspora community to pay for crop insurance premiums for their family members and friends back at home. West Africans living abroad can now pay for insurance cover by entering on OKO’s website the policy ID recorded by OKO agents at the time of registration. Incubated in 2018, OKO offers digitally enabled crop insurance via mobile phones, protecting smallholders from the consequences of drought and flood. OKO uses index-based insurance, meaning that claims are automatically validated and claimed if satellite data shows that weather conditions are detrimental to agricultural activities. To date, the startup has reached with its agri insurance products approximately 30,000 farmers in Mali, Ivory Coast, Uganda, Mozambique. It is now also working in Angola, and South Africa. It aims to reach 1 million farms by 2027. OKO has to date raised USD 1.75 million.