Kenya, UN launch US$134 million facility to improve financial access for farmers

Kenya and the International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD), a specialized agency of the United Nations, on Thursday launched a 134.05-million-U.S. dollar facility to improve financial access for smallholder farmers.

Chris Kiptoo, principal secretary for the national treasury and economic planning, told journalists in the Kenyan capital of Nairobi that the Rural Kenya Financial Inclusion Facility Project (RK-FINFA) will catalyze the mobilization of financial resources from private financial institutions and partner development institutions toward the rural agricultural sector.

“This will lead to increased financial resources at the bottom of the development pyramid while enhancing resilience to climate change among agricultural value chain actors,” Kiptoo said.

He said the facility is expected to benefit 190,000 rural Kenyan households, including both direct and indirect clients.

The facility will have a rural credit guarantee scheme that will help reduce the perceived risks and real lending risks to agricultural value chains, Kiptoo added.

Mariatu Kamara, IFAD’s country director and representative for Kenya, said the facility will also provide technical assistance to agricultural value chain actors to help them improve their production, marketing, and other business practices.