Rural finance
With access to finance, rural people can produce more, grow their enterprises, earn more and get through hard times.
Inclusive and sustainable rural transformation is critical to achieve the 2030 Agenda, particularly ending hunger and promoting sustainable food systems. Agricultural small and medium enterprises (SMEs) are often the engines of rural economies and are present at every step of agricultural value chains, from the farm to our plates.
Despite the vital role that agricultural SMEs play in food systems, they struggle to access finance that is tailored to their specific needs. Small-scale lenders, such as microfinance institutions, often provide too little financing, while commercial lenders often find it too risky to lend to these enterprises.
With the right investment, agri-SMEs can transform food systems, enhance small-scale farmers’ resilience to shocks, pivot their business models in response to crises, innovate and generate economic opportunities in rural and urban areas.
Agri-SMEs operate in a fragmented financial landscape, where the institutions that finance them and other actors that can help them flourish do not effectively communicate or coordinate with each other.
The Smallholder and Agri-SME Finance and Investment Network (SAFIN) builds bridges between these different players. By connecting, convening and working collectively, SAFIN fosters effective and inclusive ecosystems in which diverse institutions work in concert to increase the flow of capital for agricultural SMEs.
Senior Coordinator, Smallholder and Agri-SME Finance and Investment Network
[email protected]Technical Specialist, Smallholder and Agri-SME Finance and Investment Network
[email protected]Knowledge Management and Communication Analyst, Smallholder and Agri-SME Finance and Investment Network
[email protected]Administrative Assistant
[email protected]Country Programme Analyst, Asia and the Pacific
[email protected]Country Programme Analyst, Asia and the Pacific
[email protected]