NAIROBI, Kenya, Oct 15 – The 9th Annual Learning Event (ALE 2025), hosted by Mercy Corps AgriFin in partnership with Briter, brought together more than 300 participants from over 20 countries at Radisson Blu Hotel, Upperhill, Nairobi.
The one-day forum convened investors, innovators, policymakers, and agri-food entrepreneurs to explore how Africa and Asia’s agri-food systems can evolve into more resilient, inclusive, and sustainable ecosystems driven by smarter investment data.
Held under the theme “Data-Driven Innovations and Investments: Harnessing Intelligence to Build Sustainable, Investable Agri-Food Systems,” the event featured findings from the AgTech Investment and Innovation in Emerging Markets Report (H1 2025) powered by the AgBase platform.
Melaku Yirga, Mercy Corps Vice President for Africa, said the organization is focused on building resilient and inclusive food systems to prevent crises and mitigate climate shocks.
Sessions such as Bridging the Investment Gap, Harnessing Emerging Technologies to Unlock Opportunities, and Strengthening Ecosystems and Partnerships for Resilient Agri-SMEs explored ways to attract sustainable investment and scale innovation.
Sieka Gatabaki, Program Director at Mercy Corps AgriFin, noted that while $1.56 billion was invested in AgTech across Africa in 2023, localized intelligence is key to ensuring measurable impact for smallholder farmers.
AgBase data presented at the event identified innovation clusters in precision agriculture, AI-enabled farm management, and climate-smart technologies — insights expected to shape investment and policy decisions in the coming year.
Briter Managing Director Dario Giuliani said the data-driven insights will help investors and governments make faster, more informed decisions to strengthen Africa’s food systems.
