Helping smallholder farmers grow? That demands innovation

So we not only provide access to knowledge, our network and financial resources. We also bring them into contact with our innovative partners. Innovation Program Manager Anna Ignatiadi explains how that can make a big difference.

“One of their biggest challenges is low productivity. In many cases, they produce less than 20% of their potential capacity. So farmers could be harvesting much larger yields. But farmers also suffer from the consequences of climate change. Not just in the form of unpredictable weather, with sudden floods or droughts, but also from the resulting plagues of pests and crop diseases. It’s hard for smallholder farmers to defend against that.”

“The low productivity is partly caused by a lack of skills and knowledge of new technologies. But it’s also due to the fact that farmers don’t have access to financial resources. They often don’t have collateral, or even proof of identification. That means banks aren’t exactly eager to grant them loans. And without loans, the farmers can’t invest in increasing their production.”

“Smart technological solutions could make a big difference for these farmers. For example, banks could use data from satellites or remote sensing to assess the farmers’ creditworthiness. They can identify yields from a field and show how the crops are doing at the moment, which gives the banks an idea of whether the farmer will be able to pay back a loan.”

“And there are some great solutions available to help protect farmers from the consequences of climate change. Things like an app that monitors the weather and sends farmers a notification if droughts or floods are expected, so that farmers can water their crops or harvest them on time. Over the long term, that’s a better solution than offering money after the fact, when the damage has already been done.”

“What we’re good at is identifying relevant innovations, helping to fine-tune them, and then putting them to use for the benefit of smallholder farmers. We’ve built up a large network over the years. And we support all sorts of agtechs and fintechs: NGOs and start-ups in the fields of agriculture and financial technology. So we’re well-informed about all the things that are available at the moment. And there’s so much to choose from. When we notice a good match, we bring the company behind the solution into contact with a cooperative or smallholder farmers’ organization. Because we believe in the power of joining forces.”

“That’s right. Our innovation team has done a lot of projects in developing countries, and they’ve led to some important insights into what works and what doesn’t. And as part of Rabobank, we of course have access to a lot of financial expertise. We’re eager to share our knowledge and insights with other parties working on behalf of farmers in developing countries.”

“For example, we help microfinancing institutions to digitize their processes to make them more effective. We do that by sharing our own knowledge and by bringing the institutions into contact with relevant parties. A lot of institutions still work with paper, or maybe Excel. A few might have started using ERP software to support their processes. But whatever phase they’re in now, we help them move on to the next phase in their digital transition with the goal of cutting costs, improving scalability and providing more efficient services for farmers.”

“I start by following developments and looking for relevant solutions. Do they help smallholder farmers grow? And do they lead to lower costs over the long term? I also watch to see if farmers can actually use the solution. You can develop a fantastic app, but if the community only has one person with a smartphone, then it won’t help. And even if the equipment is available, you still have to find out if everyone knows how to use the app. Our first priority is always to look at the human aspect and from the farmers’ perspective.”

Rabo Foundation’s main focus at the moment is on increasing productivity and protecting against climate change.
But do the smallholder farmers also face other challenges as well?

“I think we need to make every effort to close the digital gap between developing countries and the rest of the world. A lot of smallholder farmers are so limited in reading and digital skills, mobile telephony and the availability of Internet that they’re constantly falling behind. If we really want to structurally help these farmers get ahead, then we’ll have to reverse that trend.”