Tag: Technical Assistance

Africa dominates global cashew nut production with 56% of the market. Surprisingly, only 10% is processed locally. Enter Anatrans – the exclusive supplier of Nuts2 – and the leading processor in Burkina Faso, empowering 4,000 local farmers.

Through Incofin’s Technical Assistance project, co-financed by the Smallholder Safety Net Upscaling Programme (SSNUP), and the agRIF Technical Assistance Facility (agTAF), the lives of cashew nut producers in Burkina Faso have seen remarkable improvements. How?

  • Access to Fairtrade certification
  • Provision of advance payments
  • Focus on education and healthcare for their children

With 416 farmers trained on Fairtrade practices and 2 cooperatives receiving a Fairtrade certification, the Technical Assistance project has been a resounding success. Moreover, 159 farmers received advance payments for education and healthcare. But how can you know that it is truly impactful? We listened to the farmers themselves. You can find the results in the conclusions of the survey “Voice of the Farmer”.  It turns out that farmers have embraced more sustainable production practices, and 99% have witnessed increase in their cashew nut income. Thanks to the Fairtrade label, they now benefit from larger sales volumes and higher prices.

Another heartening outcome is the significant prevention of child labour, thanks to enhanced awareness among farmers and increased resources for better living conditions for the children. The farmers themselves have spoken and wholeheartedly believe that the benefits provided by the Fairtrade label are worth every penny invested.

 

agTAF, the Technical Assistance Facility of agRIF fund

agTAF was launched in 2018 to foster the financial inclusion of smallholder farmers and rural entrepreneurs through the provision of tailored capacity building support to selected investees of the Fund. agTAF is a EUR 1.8 million facility jointly financed by the European Investment Bank (EIB), the Société de Promotion et de Participation pour la Coopération Economique S.A. (PROPARCO), the Belgian Investment Company for Developing Countries (BIO) and the agRIF fund.

 

About Smallholder Safety Net Upscaling Programme (SSNUP)

The Smallholder Safety Net Upscaling Programme (SSNUP) is a 10-year programme which aims to strengthen the safety nets of 10 million smallholder households in Africa, Latin America and Asia through technical assistance and investment in agricultural value chains, resulting in an improved well-being of 50 million low-income people. Funded by the Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation and the Luxembourg Directorate for Development Cooperation and Humanitarian Affairs, the SSNUP works as a facility to co-finance the technical assistance projects of impact investors active in the field. ADA ensures the coordination as well as the knowledge management component of the whole programme. For more info visit: www.ssnup.org.

 

 

07/08/2023

This summer Pakistan was severely hit by a catastrophic flooding, which was described as the worst the country has ever experienced. More than 1,200 people died and more than 33 million people have been affected. The worst hit provinces are Sindh and Southern Punjab, the two provinces where microfinance institution Kashf Foundation operates. Kashf, a partner organisation Incofin has been working with since 2016, is unique in that it focuses almost exclusively on women entrepreneurs (99% of its client portfolio) in a country where women’s mobility is a major issue given existing social norms.

Incofin cvso commits USD 30,000 of its technical assistance budget for Kashf’s Flood Relief Fund, the pool of funds from various donors through which Kashf comes to the aid of its clients. The grant from the Fund will go towards relief packages: dry food, hygiene and sanitation products, bedding, clothes and basic medicines. About 25,000 women micro-entrepreneurs from Sindh and Punjab provinces will benefit from this support. Together with their family members, this number even grows to 125,000. To help its clients in the longer term, Kashf will roll out loan repayment scheduling and enable recapitalisation so that its women entrepreneurs can restore their businesses.

 

22/09/2022

Incofin’s Fairtrade Access Fund (FAF) disburses USD 2 million to promote Fairtrade quinoa. In addition, the ongoing technical assistance project is enhancing the farmers’ production and will protect them better against climate change.

You could consider quinoa as a part of the Bolivian cultural heritage. The Bolivians are relying on the grain as a food source for 7,000 years. Despite the rising popularity of the grain, quinoa farmers face challenges like low productivity and climate change.

SINDAN, a Bolivian processor and exporter of quinoa is boosting the organic and Fairtrade production and consumption of quinoa (and other crops like for example also of chia and amaranth). Not just any quinoa, but the organic royal quinoa, a unique variety found only in the Bolivian Altiplano, at altitudes above 3,600 meters. The particular environment of a dry and cold climate with soils rich in salt lead to a superior quality. No wonder, this variety is in high demand both nationally and internationally.

SINDAN buys the quinoa from certified Fairtrade associations, representing hundreds of smallholder farmers. In that way, SINDAN offers those small farmers a secure market and prices above the average of other local buyers, which gives them the opportunity to raise the standard of their living. On top of that SINDAN provides trainings on techniques to help the farmers increase their production in a sustainable way.

Low productivity and climate risks threaten the livelihood of communities that depend almost exclusively on quinoa production. That is the reason why Incofin is not only investing via a USD 2 million dollar loan disbursement, but also developed a technical assistance project to finetune the farmers’ production techniques. The objective is to boost quinoa yields using environmentally friendly practices, through an integral productivity training program. This program includes topics like the use of organic fertilizers, how to prevent erosion, seed management and disease controls. The project has shown encouraging results: almost 200 producers have been trained already and they have implemented innovative techniques to produce sustainable quinoa which is after a year and a half leading to higher yields.

The second goal is to implement a climate change adaptation action plan to reduce the impact of unpredictable weather patterns and extreme climate events.  Meteorological sensors have been installed in two communities. Through these sensors, farmers will get early alerts and meteorological reports on their phone, as well as technical advice on how to protect their crop better when necessary.

 

15/10/2021

After a devastating earthquake at the end of the summer, Incofin helps ACME setting up a mobile agency to ensure contined operations in the affected areas. In that way the Haitian microfinance provider can serve its clients who have now the biggest needs for financial services.

The people of Haiti have not been spared, the past three years: political instability, social protests, economic crisis, natural disasters, Covid-19. On top of that, on August 14th, an earthquake of a 7.2 magnitude rocked the country in the Greater Antilles archipelago of the Caribbean Sea.

Microfinance institution ACME mainly focuses on microloans to small traders in rural areas, which is important in a country with poor infrastructure. Incofin has built a long-term relationship with ACME, being one of its shareholders since 2009 and having invested through multiple funds.

Despite all the challenges of the last three years, ACME has been able to maintain the size of the portfolio and operations have remained open with an apparent normality. And has, yet again, to show resilience after another setback.

On August 14th, Haiti was rocked by an earthquake of a magnitude 7.2. The death toll has grown to over 2,200 people. More than 50,000 houses have been destroyed, including schools, hospitals and markets, leaving people without homes and much needed supplies. The aftermath of the quake was only made worse by the tropical storm Grace that swept across southern Haiti three days later. The heavy rain caused misery for people who had been sleeping in the streets in tents or under plastic sheets, unable to return home after their homes got destroyed. Many of the shelters people had made, were torn apart by the winds.

Relief efforts had to be started up in a very unstable political landscape that turned to near anarchy after the assassination of Haitian President Jovenel Moïse one month before the earthquake struck. Truck hijackings and other unchecked gang activity, crowded and damaged roads have hamstrung the flow of humanitarian aid.

In these extremely hard circumstances, ACME is doing everything to ensure the continuity of its operations. In its affected agencies, most activities are performed remotely through calls and direct visits to clients. In addition, ACME is willing to set up two mobile agencies in the departments of South and Grand’Anse. Those agencies are containers, built out of trucks, composed of several spaces, which allow ACME’s staff to welcome clients and keep the operations up and running. Technical Assistance funds coming from Incofin cvso supported ACME to acquire one truck and to purchase the necessary IT equipment.

Deputy Regional Manager Lia Gonzalez explains Incofin’s commitment: “In over 10 years we have been working with ACME, there hasn’t been a challenge nor crisis that this institution has not successfully overcome. The courage and resilience of the managers, collaborators and partners is worth all of our admiration and respect. Despite the circumstances, ACME’s commitment to keep supporting its clientele remains unharmed. We worked together to develop mobile agencies supported by the Technical Assistance Facility of Incofin cvso to make sure ACME could ensure its continued operation and closeness to micro-entrepreneurs when they need it the most.”

14/10/2021

Today is the day humanity has exhausted nature’s budget for the year. More sustainable agriculture can be a powerful lever to push the date of Earth Overshoot Day.

Agriculture takes a big bite out of earth’s natural resources.  It is the leading source of pollution in several countries, with pesticides and fertilizers that are released into water and soil. Agriculture also accounts for a significant share of greenhouse gas emissions that cause climate change. 17% through direct agricultural activities and an additional 7-14% through land use changes. Finally, it consumes about 70% of the planet’s fresh water and approximately 80% of all threatened terrestiral bird and mammal species are imperiled by agriculturally driven habitat loss.[1]

However, sustainable agricultural practices can contribute to a more efficient use of resources and reduce the environmental impact of agricultural activities on the planet, while increasing productivity to meet an increasing food demand of humanity.

At Incofin, we partner with producer organisations and small and medium agricultural enterprises that implement social and environmental good practices to support sustainable agriculture in developing countries. We aim to contribute to the development of a fair and sustainable agricultural sector, but also to address the financial needs of smallholder farmers by providing better access to capital and to sustainable markets, while providing a fair return to investors.

In addition to our investments, Incofin also develops and manages, in partnership with the client, projects to strengthen sustainability practices. These technical assistance (TA) projects enable to explore innovative agricultural practices, to expand organic production and to develop circular economy models within organisations to make a more efficient use of resources when producing food.

Cooperativa Cafetalera ”Capucas” Limitada (COCAFCAL), Honduras

Coffee production

907 smallholder producers

Period TA-project: 2016-2018

Removing the coffee bean from the cherry through the process of wet milling generates a significant amount of wastewater and coffee pulp. Typically, these byproducts go unused. Under the worst circumstances, wastewater is discharged into nearby rivers and coffee pulp is left in fields to rot. Incofin’s TA helped Capucas design a system whereby 100% of the water and pulp generated by the wet mill is used to create organic fertilizers for members, creating a closed-loop production system that reduces impact on the local environment.

Impact achieved:

  • 22,000 liters of water reused in 2018
  • 200,000 kilos of coffee pulp reused
  • 5,300 smallholder farmers using organic fertilizers.

 

COOPFAM, Brazil

Organic coffee production

TA-project: ongoing since 2019

To improve the performance of organic plantations and maintain the minimum quality required by the buyers, it is key to ensure the good quality of seedlings. The production of healthy and well-developed seedlings is an extremely important factor for any crop and especially for those of perennial character, such as coffee. COOPFAM members used to buy seedlings from external suppliers which was costly and not entirely suitable for organic agriculture since the trees were mixed with conventional types. Through a TA project, COOPFAM has been establishing nurseries where the farmers produce seedlings and which, through economies of scale, will generate the best socio-economic benefits for them and for the cooperative.  

Impact achieved so far:

  • Increase of certified organic members from 120 to 167 in 2020
  • 7 technical facilitators trained to provide high quality advice on the cultivation of organic coffee trees, incl. production of organic compost
  • 176 producers trained in the production of organic coffee seedlings
  • 23 nurseries for organic seedlings established with more than 150.000 organic seedlings produced and planted in the farmers’ plots 

 

[1] https://www.oecd-ilibrary.org/sites/c49f1a94-en/index.html?itemId=/content/component/c49f1a94-en

 

29/07/2021
A Fairtrade certification brings many advantages: it ensures consumers that they are buying a good quality product in accordance with social, environmental and economic standards. Smallholder farmers benefit from a Fairtrade premium and receive a minimum price which protects them in case market prices drop. That is why Incofin assists their Congolese partner organization to acquire the Fairtrade certificate.

Incofin IM recently launched a technical assistance project with the Congolese (DRC) coffee cooperative SOPROCOPIV, an investee of Incofin since February 2020, via Incofin’s Fairtrade Access Fund (FAF). The Technical Assistance project is co-financed by the Technical Assistance facility of the FAF (TAF) funded by KFW, FMO and BIO. The cooperative, who already has the UTZ, Organic and Fair for Life certifications, expressed its strong willingness to become Fairtrade certified by the end of 2021.

The Fairtrade audit cannot be conducted on site for security and infrastructure reasons, SOPROCOPIV is part of the pilot program for “certification in special conditions“. The process will be conducted online and before performing the audit, the cooperative needs to comply with it. Incofin supports SOPROCOPIV in acquiring the Fairtrade certification by training its agronomists on the certification standards and helping the cooperative in the required documentation of processes before the audit. As a result of this project, SOPROCOPIV expects to have no less than 5,036 farmers Fairtrade certified by 2022.

Fairtrade certified coffee farmers benefit from Fairtrade premiums and receive as well the minimum price which provides a vital safety net in case the market prices drop. The cooperative will also attract more buyers and sell more quality products.

The cooperative has shown great enthusiasm and motivation since the start of the project. As of today, 3,350 farmers have been trained on the Fairtrade standards already.

”We sincerely thank the Fairtrade Access Fund through its Technical Assistance department for agreeing to accompany SOPROCOPIV in the process of Fairtrade certification. This assistance plays a great role in this process because it allows the cooperative to have an expert consultant in certification who is now supervising and training us on the different Fairtrade standards. This assistance has a positive impact because it responds to a real need that SOPROCOPIV has to certify its members in order to promote a fair trade along the whole value chain and to benefit from these advantages aiming at improving the lives of the farmers.” – Jean-Marie Muhindo Malekani, President of SOPROCOPIV

 

Covid-19 crisis relief

SOPROCOPIV will be the first investee of the Fairtrade Access Fund that will be supported by the Fairtrade COVID-19 Producer Funds. Faitrade International launched the funds, co-financed by TAF, last year to meet the immediate needs of farmers, workers and their communities, while also establishing a foundation for longer-term economic recovery efforts.

Incofin’s grant will support SOPROCOPIV’s campaign to raise awareness among its members and their families on how to contain the spread of the virus. The cooperative has distributed information leaflets, washable masks and soap to its members and has sensitized them on the importance of adhering to the essential health measures. In addition, it will install water tanks in two villages that have no water access.

“The approval and execution of this project was a salvation and allowed all the members of our cooperative to benefit from some necessary kits for the prevention of this pandemic such as soaps, nose covers, water tanks in gathering places like washing stations and factories for the regular washing of hands. The project has enabled the cooperative to strengthen the capacities of its members by sensitizing them on the protection and the fight against the coronavirus. We thank the FAF TAF for this support and encourage it to support other initiatives to improve the welfare of rural farmers.” – Jean-Marie Muhindo Malekani, President of SOPROCOPIV

 

About SOPROCOPIV 

SOPROCOPIV is a Congolese coffee cooperative located in the Butembo region of North Kivu, Democratic Republic of Congo. Established in 2008 by a group of smallholder farmers, the cooperative has been growing from year to year to go from 1,408 members at its creation to 7,636 in April 2021. SOPROCOPIV is recognized as the biggest sustainably certified cooperative in the Butembo region. Its mission is to bring Congolese coffee production to a competitive level throughout the world in order to valorize the efforts of farmers by offering them the best prices and premiums for excellence through the quality certificates obtained.

www.soprocopiv.com

 

About the Fairtrade Access Fund (FAF)

Read more about FAF in the Annual Report 2020.

www.incofinfaf.com

 

08/05/2021