Esoko wins Agritech Company of the Year

Utilizing technology to address daily agricultural challenges has garnered Esoko Limited the esteemed title of "Agritech Company of the Year."

We are excited to share that this recognition was achieved at the recently concluded Ghana Agriculture and Agro-Processing Awards (GAAPA) 2023.

By integrating technology with agriculture, we have fortified food security, bolstered resilience against climate change, and equipped farmers with vital insights for innovation and sustainability. This remarkable accomplishment has been realized through our unwavering efforts. One notable venture is the collaboration between Esoko and AICCRA (Accelerating Impacts of CGIAR Climate Research for Africa), where we are actively engaged in a project aimed at enhancing climate resilience and advocating climate-smart agricultural practices among rural Ghanaian farmers. This initiative has successfully reached its goal of delivering Climate Information Services and Climate-Smart Agriculture technologies to over 250,000 farmers in maize, yam, cowpea, and vegetables.

In the realm of agriculture, we have also achieved a significant feat by digitally transforming the entire agriculture value chain on our Driving Market Access & Managing AG Value Chains (DigiMakt) Project. This has led to increased transparency in supply chains for commodity aggregators, nucleus farmers, and off-takers. Moreover, farmers can now access accurate and timely market prices and climate-smart agronomic information. This holistic approach is projected to enhance farmer incomes by over 20%, thereby boosting the operational efficiency of commodity aggregators and off-takers. Currently, 7,789 farmers received weekly climate-smart information, agronomic advice, tropical weather forecasts, and commodity prices The digitization initiative is poised to reduce the operational costs of commodity off-takers by 40%, enabling them to pass on the benefits to farmers through improved prices. This is being achieved with support from the European Union (EU) funds for the AGRIDI project through the International Centre of Insect Physiology and Ecology(icipe).

Addressing gender disparity and discrimination in agriculture, Esoko has partnered with Plan Ghana under the Women's Innovation and Sustainable Enterprise in Ghana (WISE) Project. This collaboration strives to create an enabling environment by challenging gender norms, empowering women with enhanced skill sets and financial literacy, and facilitating networking opportunities for women entrepreneurs in the agriculture sector.

Recognizing the increasing dependency of the Ghanaian economy on agriculture, Esoko provides scientific agricultural knowledge, empowering both small and large-scale farmers to revolutionize the sector. Our efforts contribute to sustained growth, industrialization, and heightened productivity by elevating farmers' yields. The project has impacted over 4000 women farmers in the soya bean, mushroom, Beekeeping, and snail value chain.

Dr. Daniel Asare-Kyei, our CEO, along with the entire Esoko team, expresses deep gratitude for this recognition. He emphasizes that our core focus remains on utilizing technology to empower farmers in fostering resilience against climate change and promoting sustainable agriculture not only in Africa but also globally. This accolade underscores our dedication to this mission. Dr. Asare-Kyei underscores his commitment to enhancing global food security while safeguarding the environment. He further states that this award not only acknowledges our past accomplishments but also fuels our determination to continuously push the boundaries of Agritech innovation. Esoko remains open to collaborations and partnerships aimed at addressing agricultural challenges, viewing ourselves as allies in the agricultural sector rather than competitors.

Dr. Daniel Asare- Kyei, our C.E.O, and the entire Esoko team are appreciative of this acknowledgment, “using technology to empower farmers to foster resilience to climate change and sustainable agriculture in Africa and beyond remains our hallmark” and this honor demonstrates our commitment to that goal, he said.

He expressed his gratitude and dedication to improving global food security and preserving the environment.

He added that “The award not only honored our past achievements but will also fuel our determination to continue pushing the boundaries of Agritech innovations, ESOKO is open to collaborations and partnerships to address agricultural challenges, we see ourselves as colleagues and not competitors in the Agric sector”.

The Ghana Agriculture and Agro-Processing Awards 2023 functions as a forum to recognize individuals and entities that have played a substantial role in propelling the agriculture sector forward, including us and other organizations rooted in agriculture. The recipients of these awards are chosen and assessed by the Awards' Research Board. This procedure entails unbiased surveys conducted through diverse engagement techniques. The criteria for evaluation encompass aspects such as Quality, Innovation, Market Leadership, Business Adaptability, Customer Dedication, Corporate Social Responsibility, and Industry Contributions.

The company began in 2005 as Tradenet and got incorporated as Esoko in 2008, as an initiative to see how the emergence of mobile technology in Africa could improve the lives of rural communities across the continent, especially smallholder farmers. Headquartered in Ghana, Esoko is a technology firm empowering farmers to get better market prices for their products, expert advice on agronomic practice in more than 15 local languages and sends climate-smart agriculture technologies and practices to farmers - one text message at a time. The company serves over 1.5 million farmers, half in Ghana and the rest across 19 African countries.

Esoko is committed to improving the livelihood of underserved communities by empowering them – and the organizations that serve them – through robust technology and reliable field deployment solutions. We remain committed to our mission, ready to cultivate success for ourselves and the global farming community.