30/10//2017

Addis Ababa, Ethiopia

The project has facilitated the participation of some of its key stakeholders -including MSMEs, financial institutions and providers of technical assistance- to the African Microfinance Week, one of the major and largest event in the inclusive financial industry, which took place in Addis Ababa from 09 to 13 October 2017.

The event brought together hundreds of directors and managers of MFIs, NGOs, banks, and companies investing in the so-called “missing middle” of the African agricultural sector, meaning the micro, small and medium agribusinesses. International Organizations, governmental authorities, public institutions, regulators, researchers and practitioners also participated. The conference envisaged several training sessions and thematic workshops. In this respect, the Roots and Tubers project organized and led a training on ‘’Risk assessment and investment strategies to deliver financial services to agricultural MSMEs’’ for the benefit of the project beneficiaries and stakeholders, as well as for all other interested practitioners and experts ( for a total of approximately 60 participants).

Furthermore, a workshop was organized to share findings and exchange the lessons learned in each country, on the constraints limiting the access to- and the provision of financial services to the potato and cassava value chains, in Benin, Cameroon, Ivory Coast, Rwanda, Uganda and Malawi. The workshop was enriched by a thorough discussion among the seven countries, raising several interesting issues and identifying very interesting potential solutions, coming not only from African countries, but also from successful experiences documented in other countries, such as Bangladesh.

This workshop represented an opportunity for the project to strengthen the effectiveness of the activities implemented in the countries not only by improving their knowledge on agricultural value chain financing but also through the opportunity of intra and cross-country dialogue between research, financial services providers and potential clients. 

Workshop outputs will also improve guidance on a number of already planned project activities, and in particular will provide a business opportunity lens to reinforce the synergies between project outputs.