Over 61,000 smallholder farmers will benefit from a financial agreement signed between the International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD) and Zambia to increase the incomes and food and nutrition security of rural households. The project will promote market-oriented agriculture and focus particularly on women and young people.

The financing agreement for the Enhanced Smallholder Agribusiness Promotion Programme (E-SAPP) was signed in Rome by Gilbert F. Houngbo, President of IFAD, and Pamela Kabamba, Permanent Secretary, Budget and Economics Affairs, Ministry of Finance of Zambia. It follows the Smallholder Agribusiness Promotion Programme (SAPP), which has been making significant progress in smallholder commercialization and agribusiness promotion.

The total cost of the project is US$29.7 million, including a US$21.2 million loan and $1.0 million grant from IFAD. The project will be cofinanced by the private sector ($3.4 million), the Indaba Agricultural Policy Research Institute ($0.5 million) technical assistance, the Platform for Agricultural Risk Management ($0.2 million) grant, the Government of Zambia ($2.0 million) and by the beneficiaries themselves ($1.2 million).