By Etuka Sunday
The African Development Bank and the African Fertilizer and Agribusiness Partnership (AFAP) yesterday signed two grant agreements for the implementation of fertilizer trade credit guarantee projects in Nigeria and Tanzania.
The signing ceremony took place on the sidelines of the African Green Revolution Forum (AGRF) 2019 in Accra, Ghana.
The agreement aims to officially launch the two Africa Fertilizer Financing Mechanism (AFFM) trade credit guarantee projects in Nigeria and Tanzania.
The African Fertilizer and Agribusiness Partnership will be the implementing partner operating in the two countries on behalf of the Africa Fertilizer Financing Mechanism, a special fund administered by the African Development Bank to unlock the financing of the fertilizer value chain in Africa.
The agreement was signed by: Dr. Jennifer Blanke, Vice President for Agriculture, Human and Social Development, African Development Bank Group, Jason Scarpone, CEO, African Fertilizer and Agribusiness Partnership.
Under a two-year implementation plan, the projects will lead to the enhancement of Tanzania’s and Nigeria’s fertilizer importation and distribution capacity and will target 10 importers, 5 blenders/manufacturers, and 37 hub agro-dealers as direct beneficiaries, 520 retail agro-dealers as indirect beneficiaries and 700,000 smallholder farmers as final beneficiaries.
The projects will also contribute to achieving the objectives of the Bank’s Feed Africa Strategy in the two countries by increasing agricultural productivity and food security.
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