Donor funding pressures put digital services for smallholder farmers at risk

NAIROBI, Kenya, Oct 27— Digital agriculture programmes face a sustainability test as development funding comes under pressure, prompting calls for new financing models to keep services accessible to millions of smallholder farmers beyond donor-funded projects. Agriculture stakeholders at the 10th AgriFin Learning Event in Nairobi on Tuesday said digital platforms that provide farm advice, weather information and financial services must develop viable business models to survive beyond the lifespan of individual programmes. The discussions come as Prosper Global AgriFin reports reaching more than 8.5 million smallholder farmers through digital information services, surpassing its target of five million, with women accounting for 41 per cent of those reached. Participants cautioned, however, that expanding access does not guarantee long-term sustainability, particularly where providers must cover technology, customer support and rural delivery costs while keeping services affordable for farmers. Melaku Yirga, Prosper Global’s vice president for Africa, said the priority was to build systems capable of sustaining and scaling solutions tested over the past decade. AgriFin began in 2012 by exploring how mobile technology could improve farmers’ access to agricultural information and financial services. Subsequent programmes supported the expansion of digital services in Kenya, Ethiopia, Nigeria, Tanzania and Uganda. Financing gap Stakeholders identified high rural delivery costs, unpredictable weather, weak infrastructure and volatile agricultural markets as barriers to investment in smallholder farming. Lenders also face difficulties assessing farmers’ financial risk, limiting access to credit and other financial products that could support agricultural productivity. Sieka Gatabaki, Prosper Global AgriFin’s programme director, said digital services could help address some of these challenges by improving access to weather forecasts, agricultural advice and financial tools. However, participants stressed that technology alone would not guarantee viable services, arguing that platforms must respond to farmers’ needs, operate through trusted local networks and have the infrastructure necessary to reach rural communities. They called for governments, financial institutions, technology companies and development partners to coordinate investment and share responsibility for delivering services. Public-private partnerships, domestic financing and blended funding models were identified as potential ways to reduce reliance on external grants and support continued service delivery. Jasmina Lipovic, Prosper Global AgriFin’s global finance operations and compliance director, said relationships with banks, agribusinesses and technology companies could help sustain services beyond individual projects. The programme is also adapting its operations and seeking to diversify its funding sources. Participants said future financing should be guided by evidence showing which digital services deliver value, attract sustained use and can operate on a financially viable basis. They argued that investment decisions should consider not only the number of farmers reached but also whether users find the services useful and can afford to continue using them. Innovation ecosystem leader Sheena Raikundalia urged stakeholders to invest in the connections between finance, infrastructure, technology, markets and farmers rather than treating them as separate interventions. She also called for artificial intelligence and other emerging technologies to address specific agricultural challenges.