Pan-African Savings and Loans to the rescue of Small Holder Farmers

Pan-African Savings and Loans Limited in partnership with AgroCenta, under their Financial Inclusion for Small Holder Farmers in Africa Project (FISFAP) and Alliance for a Green Revolution in Africa (AGRA) will provide credit facilities for small holder farmers in the Afram Plains South of the Eastern Region.

The aim of the partnership is to provide loans and financial advisory services to all small holder farmers in order to expand their farming businesses.

Emelia Desiree Atta-Fynn, MD, Pan-African, said as part of her outfit’s strategies to promote financial inclusion and improve livelihoods of its customers, Pan-African embraces collaborative opportunities to offer financial services to the economically active in society.

She said the quest of exploring innovative means of doing business and in meeting the needs of our target group led them to partner with AgroCenta, a company that connects the small holder farmers in the staple food (Rice, maize, millet and soybean) value chain to a wider online market to trade, to access truck delivery services and get real-time market information, all from their mobile phones through the use of SMS and voice services.

“This partnership is strongly supported by AGRA, a farmer centered African-led, and partnership-driven institution that is transforming Africa’s small holder farming to businesses at the same time advocating for an enabling policy environment”, Madam Atta-Fynn explained.

Amanda Anipu, Program Officer, AGRA, said AGRA aims at partnering small holder farmers to expand their businesses. “

“According to AGRA the reason it embarked on this initiative to support everyone in the food chain supply is that, they envision, in the future, using online sales of farm produce”.

Francis Obirikorang, CEO, Agrocenta said the program is expected to give out loans to over 300 farmers which includes crop insurance and pensions to make life easier when they cannot farm anymore.

Pan-African over the years has leveraged technology to achieve its corporate goals of making the financial sector relevant to the low-income earners and businesses.

With the introduction of Quick, a mobile financial product, customers can now have access to their bank accounts with the company from any location at any time.

By simply accessing the short code *777#, one can access their accounts and is able to deposit, withdraw or transfer money to another person via their mobile wallets. This service also allows customers to access short term credit facilities as well as to top up their phone credits, among others.