Agricultural Microfinance in Mali
Template G Content Blocks
Sub Editor
Agricultural productivity in Africa is low despite the existence of improved seeds, fertilizers, and pesticides. As much of the population works in agriculture, encouraging use of these improved technologies could raise productivity and in turn reduce poverty and encourage economic growth. But why do farmers fail to invest in potentially profitable technologies? One reason may be that they do not have enough cash on hand when they need to purchase them and lack access to credit. Microcredit organizations have attempted to address this problem, but the typical microcredit loan contract—where clients must start repayment after a few weeks—is ill-suited for agriculture. Providing farmers with loans at the beginning of the planting season, to be repaid in a lump sum at the time of harvest, could facilitate investment and increased profitability.
July 01, 2015