Absa Bank signs USD 10 million financing deal with the eco.business Fund to support climate-smart agricultural practices in Kenya
Luxembourg and Nairobi, 7 March 2023 – Absa Bank Kenya PLC and the eco.business Fund, an impact fund, have announced a USD 10 million (KES1.26 billion) partnership for the bank to on-lend to domestic and export businesses participating in the country's agricultural value chains.
The funding line is expected to improve resource efficiency, increase food security, and mitigate the effects of climate change in the agricultural sector. As part of the collaboration, the two organizations will work to improve the availability and quality of funding dedicated to agricultural value chains, as well as to promote sustainable practices across the sector.
Michael Evers, the eco.business Fund Board of Directors chairperson, said: “Supporting sustainable and climate-resilient agricultural practices and strengthening local value chains are some of the fund’s top priorities. Our investment will contribute towards equipping various value chain actors in Kenya including agricultural producers, aggregators, processors and exporters: These clients will use the finance and knowledge to achieve more biodiversity and climate friendly sustainable production and exports while alleviating food insecurity. It is also the first step in a great partnership with the Absa Group across sub-Saharan Africa.”
Kenya's agriculture sector is a major contributor to the economy, accounting for roughly 50% of GDP (including linkages), 60% of export revenues, and 40% of the workforce. However, the sector is confronted with macroeconomic and climate-related challenges, resulting in stagnant yields and contributing to food insecurity. The lack of market access opportunities, increased post-harvest losses and unstructured value chains add to the burden on value chain actors. Compounded by this, there is a high financial and technical threshold required to implement climate-smart agriculture practices that ensure natural resource efficiency, biodiversity conservation and climate change mitigation. It is estimated that nearly a third of Kenya's agricultural production goes to waste as a result of fragmented supply chains, outdated practices, and poor infrastructure.
On her part, Absa Bank’s Business Banking Director Elizabeth Wasunna said: “As a bank, we are fully cognisant of the immense contribution that agriculture makes to Kenya’s economy and as the country’s economic mainstay and hence our collaboration with such like-minded partners towards the continuous growth and development of the sector.”
She added: “We have embedded agribusiness as one of the growth pillars in our overall business strategy. As such, we take a value chain approach, actively providing solutions for input providers, primary producers, aggregators, and agro-industry players. This partnership complements our four-pronged approach of access to markets, access to information, access to mentorship and coaching, and access to sustainable finance."
As part of the eco.business Fund’s commitment to promoting impact and sustainability, the facility will be augmented with a technical assistance facility aimed at value chain wide capacity building. In a first program being rolled out, more than 300 value chain actors and clients of Absa Bank will be trained on post-harvest loss reduction and financial literacy in the cereal, horticulture, and dairy value chains.
The eco.business Fund will also host relationship-building and information-sharing roundtable discussions with exporters, aggregators, and processors on prioritizing sustainability in two emerging export crops, namely avocados and macadamias.
About the eco.business Fund
The eco.business Fund aims to promote business and consumption practices that contribute to biodiversity conservation, to the sustainable use of natural resources, and to mitigate climate change and adapt to its impacts in Latin America and the Caribbean, and sub-Saharan Africa.
The fund pursues its mission by providing dedicated financing and technical assistance to financial institutions and businesses committed to sustainability and focuses on four economic sectors: agriculture and agri-processing, fishery and aquaculture, forestry, and sustainable tourism.
By leveraging the power of blended finance, the fund is able to amplify its impact and outreach by drawing its capital from various layers and investing either via financial intermediaries or directly in businesses.
An impact investment fund advised by Finance in Motion, the eco.business Fund was initiated by Germany’s KfW Development Bank and Conservation International with financial support from the German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ) and the European Union.
The fund’s impact management system, through its advisor, Finance in Motion, underwent an independent verification by impact auditor BlueMark affirming strong Operating Principles for Impact Management alignment in 2021.
For more information, please visit www.ecobusiness.fund and follow us on Twitter @ecobusinessfund
About Absa Bank Kenya PLC
Absa Bank Kenya Plc is listed on the Nairobi Securities Exchange and is one of Kenya’s leading financial institutions. The Bank has been a major player in Kenya’s financial landscape, engaged in personal and institutional banking, bancassurance and asset management. The Bank has a regional and global footprint which enables it to offer end-to-end financial solutions to retail and institutional clients. It has also been associated with a number of market firsts, such as the launch of the first ATM, WhatsApp banking, Sharia-compliant banking and unsecured lending. Absa Bank Kenya has presence in 38 counties. It has 83 branches, 208 ATMs and a robust Internet and mobile banking platform. The bank’s purpose is to bring possibilities to life.
Media contact eco.business Fund
Anne Johnson
Senior Officer, Marketing & Communications
Email: press@ecobusiness.fund
Phone: +49 (0)69 / 271 035-742
Media contact Absa Bank Kenya PLC
Email:communications.ke@absa.africa