African Agritech Startups Can Benefit from the KfW- Sahel Capital Partnership

The German development bank KfW in partnership with Lagos based Sahel Capital has announced that Agritech startups can apply for the $24m Social Enterprise Fund for Agriculture and Agritech startups in Africa (SEFAA).

The SEFAA program will largely invest in debt (with the option of investing some stock or quasi-equity) with the aim of bridging the financing gap for early-stage Agritech startups.

Sahel Capital will serve as an investment adviser to SEFAA, an impact fund that aims to reduce poverty in Sub-Saharan Africa by investing in social agricultural enterprises (SAEs).

Sahel Capital, which was launched in 2010 has so far invested in and built SME agribusinesses throughout seven agricultural value chains, raising its first $65.9m Fund for Agricultural Finance in Nigeria (FAFIN).

Mezuo Nwuneli, Managing Partner at Sahel Capital speaking on the partnership said: “We are delighted to be selected as investment adviser to SEFAA and grateful to KfW for its constant support and commitment to our shared mission of driving growth in this critical sector.

“We are excited at this next phase in the firm’s evolution as we leverage existing sector expertise, a broad network and regional partnerships to expand our investment footprint outside Nigeria into West, East and Southern Africa,”.

The KfW which have long been a strong supporter of agricultural development on the African continent, will be looking to create and preserve jobs, as well as achieve six of the UN Sustainable Development Goals, in addition to its targeted aim of reducing poverty through its investments.

Sahel Capital will invest in Agric startups, with particular focus on enterprises or intermediaries that help smallholder farmers (SHFs) increase productivity, address market access issues or information gaps, or provide agricultural finance tailored to SHFs’ specific needs and production cycles.

Interested startups and individuals can click here for more information on the application processes.