British International Investment, BII, UK’s development finance institution, has committed $7.5 million to Nigerian agri-tech platform, Babban Gona.
The British Deputy High Commissioner in Lagos, Mr Jonny Baxter disclosed this during a news conference yesterday in Lagos.
Baxter said this is to strengthen food security and climate resilience for smallholder farmers in Northern Nigeria.
Baxter added that the investment would address key challenges facing smallholder farmers, including poor access to finance, quality input, agronomic training and reliable markets.
He said although the north produces up to 60 percent of Nigeria’s maize, smallholder farmers are constrained by low productivity and increasing climate risks such as flood and drought.
“These constraints worsen post-harvest losses of up to 30 percent, threatening yields, incomes and deepening food insecurity in the region, ” he said.
According to him, Babban Gona’s offering is designed to overcome these structural barriers by providing comprehensive end-to-end services for smallholder farmers through its Artificial Intelligence powered platform.
The high commissioner said these include high-quality agricultural input, financial credit, training on climate-smart practices and support with harvest, storage and access to market.
Baxter noted that Babban Gona’s franchise model would help farmers run micro-enterprises that provide input and financing, supporting them to scale and access local bank funding.
“Through this model, it is expected to improve yields, income and climate resilience for around 140,000 smallholder farmers in Northern Nigeria by 2029,” he said.
According to Baxter, a core component of the investment is building the climate resilience of smallholders.
He said Babban Gona’s services include climate-smart agricultural input such as drought-resilient seeds and multi-peril area yield insurance, which helps farmers recover from climate shocks.
“The investment aligns with BII’s mandate to support rural communities in underserved markets and build on recent investments in innovative agricultural companies such as AgDevCo and Johnvents,” he said.
Speaking, the UK Trade Envoy to Nigeria, Florence Eshalomi expressed pride in standing alongside BII to announce a $7.5 million investment in Babban Gona, transforming smallholder agriculture in Nigeria.
She explained that the investment would scale an innovative, tech-enabled model that would provide farmers with access to finance, training and services aimed at boosting yields, increasing incomes and enhancing climate resilience.
She said the partnership underscored the UK-Nigeria’s commitment to sustainable and inclusive growth, adding that she is eager to see the impact it would generate.
Commenting, the Managing Director, Babban Gona, Kola Masha said the British government had played an instrumental role in the company’s journey by becoming the first institutional investor in its 2013 public debt raise.
He noted that more than a decade later, British International Investment’s decision to commit an amount ten times larger is a strong testament to their shared vision of improving the lives of smallholder farmers.
Masha expressed the organisation’s excitement towards partnering BII in the next phase of its journey.
He said the organisation is eager to deepen its impact with the ambition of evolving into the world’s most impactful businesses.
