Photo: AGRA
Lack of transparency in the agricultural finance market has been a persistent obstacle to bridging the gap between agri-SMEs and the capital they need to grow. Although agri-SMEs are recognized as crucial engines of growth in rural economies, low visibility into the pipeline of viable agribusinesses and lack of comprehensive data for decision making on the lenders’ side continue to perpetuate the financing gap faced by these enterprises.
With this challenge in mind, MIX and SCOPEinsight have joined forces with AGRA to provide reliable data on the performance of agribusinesses to inform the investment decisions of finance providers. Starting with selected markets in sub-Saharan Africa, MIX and SCOPEinsight will establish a common language for agri-SMEs with insights from investors, agribusinesses and other industry actors. This common language will then be used to develop a set of standardized metrics to better assess the financial and operational performance of agri-SMEs.
Building on AGRA’s expertise and experience in supporting agribusinesses, MIX and SCOPEinsight aim to create the transparency that will connect lenders and other financial service providers with viable agri-SMEs. Early thinking on this initiative was presented to SAFIN partners during the 2018 Annual Plenary. We will continue to follow its development in the coming months given its close relevance to SAFIN’s agenda of bridging the finance gap for agri-SMEs.
Find out more about this initiative here.