How We're Helping African Farmers Grow

Farming is the number one source of employment in Africa, yet its agricultural productivity is the lowest of any region in the world. 

The opportunity is immense—60% of the world’s uncultivated arable land is on the continent—but rural communities are suffering from a lack of economic opportunity.

So young Africans are building innovative solutions to tackle the problems that are impacting their families and communities.

Wissal Ben Moussa is the Co-founder & R&D Officer of Sand To Green, a Moroccan startup pairing regenerative agroforestry techniques with data and technology to turn the desert green. 

Samuel Rigu is the Co-founder & CEO of Safi Organics, a Kenyan company employing a decentralized process to locally manufacture organic fertilizers. 

Francis Nderitu is the Founder of Keep IT Cool, a recent Earthshot Prize winner, building cold chain storage to reduce post-harvest losses in Kenya. 

00:00 - Africa has the lowest farming productivity in the world
01:08 - Sand to Green is reversing desertification in Morocco
04:30 - Safi Organics is manufacturing organic fertilizers in Kenya
07:23 - Keep IT Cool is reducing post-harvest loss in Kenya
10:15 - Solving problems for their local communities

Check out more episodes of The Greenprint here.

This episode was produced as part of our series on climate action in Africa, The Greenprint, in partnership with Catalyst Fund, Delta40, Africa Climate Ventures, and AgBase - an initiative powered by Briter and Mercy Corps AgriFin.

AgBase is a business intelligence platform offering real-time data, market insights, and a centralised hub for information on agtech and foodtech across emerging markets. This initiative, backed by the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation and The Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office (FCDO), and hosted by Briter Bridges in partnership with MercyCorps AgriFin, is dedicated to bolstering the knowledge framework essential for catalysing investments in digital and technology-driven solutions, with an underlying mission is to transform the lives of smallholder farmers and boost socio-economic growth.

Delta40 is a venture studio and venture capital fund supporting diverse founders leading ventures in energy, agriculture, and fintech, with a special focus on supporting African and female entrepreneurs. Beyond capital, they provide hands-on support from experienced operators & investors to drive growth from idea to pan-African scale. 

Africa Climate Ventures is a pioneering venture builder working to build a portfolio of climate businesses on the continent. ACV invests to bring proven global climate technology to Africa, accelerate and de-risk the continental expansion of technologies and business models that have gained traction in one or a few African market(s), and add carbon revenue streams to existing African businesses with the potential to scale climate-positive solutions.

‍Catalyst Fund is a venture capital fund and venture builder, investing for a climate resilient future in Africa. They combine capital and a hands-on venture-building approach at the pre-seed stage, to partner with visionary founders who are developing climate adaptation solutions that enhance the resilience of communities and the planet.

This episode is made possible through a partnership with Prosper Africa’s Catalytic Investment Facility. Aimed at boosting investment and innovative climate adaptation and resilience ventures across Africa, The Catalyst Fund is one of the grantees under Prosper Afri