World Bank & Kenya’s Ministry of Agriculture Launches Agritech Incubator Program

The World Bank has launched the One-Million Farmer Initiative in collaboration with Kenya’s Ministry of Agriculture and other partners. The World Bank announced plans to launch the Agritech Incubator Program in the next three years.

The incubator will gather millions of Kenyan farmers together to provide a digital platform for market access, information, and financial services. It will serve as an avenue for digital and disruptive technologies on the agricultural value chain. The program is open to agritech startups focused on precision agriculture, Internet of Things, Drone Technology, Crop/Soil/Weed/Disease Sensing and fintech solutions.

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The Institute of Security Studies estimates that food production in Kenya would have to grow by 75% by 2030 to meet the demands of the increasing population. According to the World Bank Global Lead for Rural Livelihoods and Agricultural Jobs, Parmesh Shah, the World Bank Group and partners will harness innovative technology to improve food security and farmer incomes through the initiative.

As the name implies, the initiatives sets to benefit 1 million farmers within the next three years. It aims to transform smallholder farmers in Kenya into mass food producers. The digital platforms will link small businesses to trade with buyers at better rates and increase their income earnings. It will also act as a shared data bank for information such as farm registration data, soil map data, and weather satellite data for those on the platform.

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