CASA report 'Mobilising climate finance towards agricultural adaptation and nature-based solutions'

CASA report 'Private finance investment opportunities in climate-smart agriculture technologies'

CASA report 'Climate finance mobilisation initiatives – Promoting climate adaptation in agriculture'

Ishmael Kumwenda of Amazon Poultry pitching to investors following the Malawi Agribusiness Investment Meeting

Group photo during the CASA Malawi Agribusiness Investment Meeting

Panelists confer during the CASA Nepal Agriculture Investment Meeting

Plenary at the CASA Nepal Agriculture Investment Meeting

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Project Overview

So, what’s the problem

There are an estimated 500m smallholder farmer currently not engaging in commercial agriculture. This is being further prevented by a $106bn financing gap in agricultural businesses in sub-Saharan Africa and Southeast Asia.

The Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO) believes in the power of on-demand evidence generation as a vehicle for promoting changes in investment policy and practice.

It has entrusted CABI and its partners to lead the CASA (Commercial Agriculture for Smallholders and Agribusiness) work programme on making the commercial and development case for investing in agri-businesses that source produce from smallholders. The programme also has a focus on promoting climate resilient food systems

What is this project doing?

The CASA programme makes the commercial and development case for investing in agribusinesses that source produce from smallholders. It does this by demonstrating how this can be done effectively, by bridging evidence gaps and by ensuring investors and policymakers have access to the right information and people to make inclusive agribusiness models succeed.

CASA consists of three components:

Research, Communication and Events (led by CABI and Niras)

CASA provides on-demand research services to close the Agri-SME finance gap in Sub-Saharan Africa and South East Asia, while mobilising climate finance for promoting resilience of food systems.

CASA combines the evidence it generates with innovative and agile development communications, to influence and inform change of policies and behaviours of donors, policymakers and investors, channelling more finance into the sector.

This unique and dual approach has received cross-industry recognition for being highly successful in shaping the debate on smallholder agriculture and the promotion of climate finance for adaptation.

With the aim of maximizing additionality, CASA has partnered with investment networks and key development actors to develop a one-entry point database for accessing information about existing investors, technical assistance providers, investment ready agribusinesses and FCDO’s commercial agriculture programmes, which upon publication will facilitate synergies between investors and reduce origination times for finding new agri-SME deals.

CASA Market Systems Development (led by Niras, Swisscontact)

The Market Systems Development Component provides technical assistance to improve knowledge, operations and capacity to improve productivity and market connections. Focus countries are: Ethiopia, Malawi, Nepal, Rwanda and Uganda.

CASA Technical Assistance Facility (TAF) team (led by Technoserve)

This team builds the case for inclusive investment which is responsive to the climate crisis. It does this through the development of practical tools, sharing exemplars, commissioning and collating databases and evidence.