🇿🇼NewsDay Zimbabwe·3 hours ago
New financing model launched for 5,000 Zimbabwean smallholder farmers
A new structured smallholder financing program has been introduced in Zimbabwe, aiming to boost agricultural growth and market access for rural farmers. Facilitated by Zimbabwean entrepreneur David Munowenyu, the initiative brings the global empowerment organization U CAN Company UCANN to implement a market-driven livelihood program focused on commercializing smallholder agriculture. The program, supported by international capital, will roll out this year in selected provinces, targeting 3,000 to 5,000 farmers cultivating high-value crops like chili, paprika, legumes, and horticulture. The goal is to increase incomes, secure off-take markets, and integrate farmers into formal financial systems. Munowenyu stated that the program aims to make agriculture a bankable sector for smallholder farmers and attract global capital into Zimbabwe’s rural economy, addressing the exclusion of productive smallholder farmers from finance. UCANN co-founder Steve Carver noted Zimbabwe's potential for impact-driven investment. The program utilizes UCANN’s Smallholder Inclusive Business Building model, which connects farmers to off-take markets before production, provides structured input financing, and tracks output to build credit histories. A pilot phase is expected to generate data for a national scale-up targeting over 100,000 farmers, supported by a broader international fundraising pipeline of up to US$1 billion.
