NAIROBI, Kenya, Feb 6 – Kenyan agribusinesses are set to enjoy funding of Sh802.5 million ($5 million) from Family Bank and eco.business Fund.
The partners announced that the financing is intended to strengthen sustainability for certified companies, smallholder farmers, and other agribusiness value chain actors embracing eco-friendly and climate-smart approaches.
Michael Evers, Chairperson of the Board of Directors of the eco.business Fund, added that the fund seeks to promote sustainable use of natural resources, biodiversity preservation, and climate change adaptation across agricultural value chains in Kenya.
“We are delighted to strengthen this promising partnership with Family Bank Kenya. Together, we aspire to enhance support for agribusinesses in Kenya,” said Evers, Chairperson of the Board of Directors of the eco.business Fund.
“We seek to adopt sustainable practices, playing a pivotal role in biodiversity conservation, sustainable resource utilization, and climate change mitigation and adaptation in this bio diverse region,” he added.
Family Bank CEO Nancy Njau said the fund will enhance the growth of local markets by providing end-to-end value in the agricultural sector, which is very crucial to the achievement of sustainable development.
“We have recorded a significant increase of 25 per cent in our agribusiness portfolio following such partnerships and we are confident that now we can scale up lending to agribusinesses and bridge their financial need to scale climate-smart agriculture technologies to enhance climate resilience,” she stated.
In 2022, the fund invested $10 million in the Kenyan lender, which was directed towards fostering sustainable practices in agribusiness value chains.
Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations statistics show that despite agriculture being vital to Kenya’s economy by contributing 33 percent of the gross domestic product, the majority of Kenya’s 7.5 million smallholder farmers, according to the International Fund for Agricultural Development, still live on less than $6 a day, just half of the country’s living-income threshold.
“The agricultural sector is very crucial to the achievement of meaningful sustainable development. As a homegrown Bank, we have been deliberate in widening our capital base and scaling up lending to this sector, particularly through partnerships,” added Njau.
