MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: ADA Microfinance Launching 10-year “Smallholder Safety Net” Program Targeting Agricultural Value Chains, 3m Households; Partnering with 5 Impact Investors

ADA Microfinance, a Luxembourg-based NGO, recently announced a new program called the Smallholder Safety Net Upscaling Programme (SSNUP) to assist: (1) smallholder farmers in accessing insurance and implementing agricultural practices that increase productivity in a “climate-smart” manner; (2) actors in agricultural value chains in adopting “more sustainable environmental and social business practices;” and (3) boosting investment in agricultural value chains. The investors Grameen Credit Agricole Foundation, Incofin, Oikocredit, responsAbility and Symbiotics have agreed to participate by increasing investment in small-scale farms and working with financial services providers to improve the products they offer farmers. This includes facilitating transactions among value-chain actors as well as delivering technical assistance to small and medium-sized enterprises, cooperatives, and other funders of agriculture. The program also includes elements for measuring impact and disseminating the results. The goal is to serve 3 million households and catalyze value chains to positively impact a total of 50 million vulnerable people. SSNUP is targeted 80 percent at Sub-Saharan Africa with services also provided Asia and Latin America.

The program has a ten-year budget of EUR 55 million (USD 65 million). For the years 2020 to 2023, the Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation and Luxembourg’s Directorate for Development Cooperation and Humanitarian Affairs are funding two thirds of the phase-one budget of EUR 18 million (USD 21.3 million). Also partnering on the effort is Lux-Development, an agency of the Luxembourgish government that is dedicated to promoting international development via education, health, microfinance and other projects.

Founded in 1994 as Appui au Développement Autonome, ADA aims to reduce poverty by investing in and supporting microfinance institutions in the Americas, Asia and Africa. As of the quarter ending June 2020, ADA managed loans totaling EUR 28 million (USD 33 million) outstanding to 54 microfinance institutions in 25 nations. During 2019, the NGO administered technical assistance to 110 microfinance institutions and reported a budget of EUR 9 million (USD 11 million).

By Kate Finster, Research Associate

Sources and Additional Resources

SSNUP press release
https://www.shareweb.ch/site/Agriculture-and-Food-Security/news/Documents/Press%20release%20-%20SSNUP_version%20finale%202409_EN.pdf

ADA profile on SSNUP
https://www.ada-microfinance.org/en/ssnup

ADA 2019 Activity Report
https://www.ada-microfinance.org/fr/nos-ressources/mediatheque?media=255

Incofin press release
http://www.incofin.com/incofin-im-selected-to-partner-in-the-new-program-of-luxembourg-and-switzerland-to-boost-the-resilience-of-smallholder-farmers/

Incofin homepage
http://www.incofin.com

Grameen Credit Agricole Foundation press release
https://www.gca-foundation.org/en/media-room/#launch-of-the-ssnup-programme-strengthening-smallholder-households-worldwide

Grameen Credit Agricole Foundation homepage
https://www.gca-foundation.org

Oikocredit homepage
https://www.oikocredit.coop

responsAbility homepage
https://www.responsability.com

Symbiotics homepage
https://symbioticsgroup.com