Mrs Deina Mayaki, Co-founder of Agriarche Ltd., an agriculture consulting firm, has emphasised the need for government to prioritise funding for African agricultural startups, highlighting the sector’s potential and challenges.
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Mayaki said this in a statement made available to the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) on Friday in Lagos.
NAN reports that Agriarche bridges the gap in Africa’s agriculture, by empowering farmers with traceability, visibility, and profitability through innovative technology.
It builds trust throughout the food chain, connecting farmers to markets, boosting incomes and cultivating a flourishing food system for all.
Mayaki highlighted the insufficiency of funding directed toward the agriculture sector, despite its role in employing over 60 per cent of the continent’s population.
She noted that in the first quarter of 2024, 50 million dollars was attracted to agriculture as against 151 million dollars directed toward transport and logistics and 105 million dollars to Fintech.
According to her, these represent 11 per cent, 32 per cent 23 per cent when compared with figures recorded in the same period of 2023.
She further lamented the lack of prioritisation for agricultural funding, citing a PWC report that showed less than 3.8 per cent of commercial bank funding went into agriculture.
According to her, despite the agriculture sector’s immense potential, access to finance remains a major hurdle, particularly for smallholder farmers.
“Agriculture claims to have about 60 per cent to 70 per cent of the African population employed by it.
“If we are serious about feeding the nation and being self-sufficient in food, then we should invest in agriculture,” Mayaki added.
NAN
