Project detail - BABBAN GONA FARMER SERVICES NIGERIA

BABBAN GONA FARMER SERVICES NIGERIA

Status: Completed investment
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The information as disclosed is indicative and provided on an "as-is/as available" basis for general informational purposes only and should not be construed as financial, legal or investment advice, nor as a commitment or an offer to arrange or provide any financing. The final decision to provide financing is subject to the terms and conditions of FMO in its sole and absolute discretion. When providing links to other sites, FMO bears no responsibility for the accuracy, legality or content of the external site or for that of subsequent links. The information on proposed investment for high-risk investments is made available in the language relevant to the country or region where the bulk of operations take place. Translations of any information into languages other than English are intended as a convenience for local stakeholders. In case of any discrepancy, the information provided in English will prevail.

Who is our customer

Established in 2012, Babban Gona (“Great Farm” in Hausa) is a financially sustainable and scalable agricultural enterprise co-owned by its farmers. The company provides cost effective end-to-end services to a network of franchise farmer groups on credit that is repayable at the end of the season. These services include training in sustainable farming, soil analysis, crop insurance, access to storage facilities, including a warehouse receipt program, marketing and distribution of products and access to credit, fertilizer and seeds. Babban Gona proactively supports its farmers to become more resilient to the effects of climate change. In addition to drought tolerant seed varieties and insurance to protect farmers against future environmental uncertainty, it offers trainings on topics like soil structure improvements, water retention and the effects of deforestation. Furthermore, Babban Gona has developed a ‘Last Mile’ business line. This initiative provides Babban Gona members with products (e.g. fertilizer, FMCG goods) to sell to non-Babban Gona members, thus further increasing their net incomes.

What is our funding objective?

FMO has extended a US$ 4 million loan to Babban Gona via its Farmer Finance program. The investment comes from MASSIF, the financial inclusion fund that FMO manages on behalf of the Dutch government. Babban Gona will use the financing to support and expand its innovative farmer service model that has proven to increase smallholders’ yield up to 2 times, and income up to 3.5 times, the national average.

Why do we fund this investment?

Through its model, Babban Gona creates much-needed jobs in northern Nigeria and a path to rise out of poverty and subsistence farming for smallholder farmers. Besides increasing farmer’s yield and income, the Babban Gona franchise is demonstrating that the smallholder segment is a viable model for investment. Over the past 6 years, Babban Gona has provided its services to over 21,000 smallholder farmers while maintaining a 99.9% loan repayment rate. Babban Gona is currently the premier maize producer in Nigeria with a goal to scale and impact one million smallholder farmers by 2025.

More investments

Date Total FMO financing
3/30/2022 USD 10.00 MLN
Region
Africa
Country
Nigeria
Sector
Agribusiness, Food & Water
Effective date
6/27/2017
End date
4/15/2021
Total FMO financing
USD 4.00 MLN
Funding
MASSIF
Risk categorization on environmental and social impacts, A = high risk, B+ = medium high risk, B = medium risk, C = low risk Environmental & Social Category
(A, B+, B or C)
B