Bananas and plantains form the staple food in the high rainfall areas of Tanzania. Over 900,000 farming households in the country are engaged in banana production. In particular, in the areas of Kilimanjaro, Kagera and Mbeya, up to 95% of households grow bananas for food and/or economic reasons, contributing more than 60% of bananas grown…
The POWERED programme launched by SF, the UK Government and DST Government of India in 2017 supports social enterprises in India to expand their businesses and in so doing, increases the economic empowerment of women-owned businesses in the Indian energy space. Under the POWERED umbrella, SF partners CEEW and Villgro have established Powering Livelihoods, a…
Firewood remains a highly important energy source for small businesses across Africa but it is, of course, highly polluting. One of the ways in which small-scale food production enterprises are reducing their CO2 emissions is through transitioning from traditional fuel sources to biofuels as a means of powering their production processes. Supported by funding from…
Women are the backbone of the agriculture sector in sub-Saharan Africa, representing between 60% and 80% of smallholder farmers. However, those aspiring to move from subsistence to small commercial farming are restricted by access to opportunities, resources and financing for growth. Our co-funding programme with the UK’s Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, Catalysing Agriculture by…
Kenya’s fisheries contribute an estimated 0.6% of GDP and largely comprise of freshwater fish. Over 70% of freshwater fish tonnage is derived from the country’s 6% portion of Lake Victoria which is dominated by small-scale artisanal fisheries and are confronted with a plethora of issues that confine the fisherfolk in poverty amidst declining fish resources.…
Our six-year Scaling Energy Access Markets in Africa (SEAM) partnership with The US Agency for International Development (USAID) and Power Africa met its objectives and came to its natural conclusion in October. SEAM improved the lives of more than 15 million underserved people in Africa, delivered over 3.1 million new connections, leveraged $441 million of…
Smallholder farms account for 68.3% of total cultivated area in Ghana. Despite their important role in Ghana’s agricultural sector and economy more generally, however, farmers largely lack access to important support services that affect their productivity and survival due to the risky nature of their craft as perceived by financial institutions. Challenges such as the…
Agriculture is a major driver of economic output in Africa, providing income and livelihoods for millions of smallholder farmers, including the most vulnerable parts of the population. However, climate-related threats, including droughts and excess rainfall as well as pests and diseases, threaten crop yields. Agricultural insurance serves as a powerful risk mitigation tool for dealing…
A new report examines the impact of Jaza Energy and the battery-as-a-service model on Jaza Hub Operators (“Jaza Stars”) as well as current, former and potential Jaza Customers. The report, conducted by the Busara Center for Behavioral Economics and co-funded by Shell Foundation and the UK government, presents the results of research conducted in the…
In Sub-Saharan Africa, small-scale farmers make up about 60 percent of the population and about 23 percent of Sub-Saharan Africa’s GDP comes from agriculture. Small-scale farmers are at the heart of African agriculture and face many challenges: access to credit for farm inputs and market access for their produce being chief among them. In 2022,…