Visa partners with ThriveAgric on Kenya Expansion gives support to thousands of farmers

The Nigerian Agritech startup ThriveAgric has announced its plans to partner with Visa, a global payment company as it expands into Kenya. The Agritech company plans to establish local and accessible hubs in 5 counties: Busia, Homabay, Migori, Nandi, and Narok, with Busia and Homabay serving during training sessions and as input development centres. The hubs will allow agents to consolidate produce during harvest, allowing farmers to deliver their crops to the hubs after harvest and receive payment based on market quality standards.

The agricultural sector engages over 40% of the entire Kenyan population and over 70% of Kenya's rural residents, underscoring its vital contribution to the economy. Despite this, obtaining financial support remains problematic, primarily due to steep interest rates. The majority of these funds are allocated for procuring agricultural inputs and meeting labour expenses, both of which are crucial operational outlays.

Although the share of agriculture in Kenya’s GDP has decreased over the years, it remains vital to the country’s economy, accounting for about 21.3% of the nominal Gross Domestic Product (GDP), as per data from the Central Bank of Kenya (CBK). And still stands as a lucrative area to invest in.

Eva Ngigi-Sarwari, Visa's Country Manager for Kenya, stated that the partnership will allow the payment company to establish a strong network that will directly benefit farmers. She also said that smallholder farmers are critical to Kenya's economy and the company's vision of expanding the digital payments ecosystem.

Ayo Arikawe, ThriveAgric co-founder, stated that this collaboration signifies a significant milestone in ThriveAgric’s expansion into Kenya, which began last year, with the establishment of local hubs in Busia and Homabay counties.

The rise of agritech has had a positive impact on Kenya's agricultural sector. Agriculture has been very impactful to the country’s economy, employing more than 40% of the population and contributing 65% of export revenue. 

This partnership will amplify the impact of agritech in Kenya as ThriveAgric continues to empower farmers by giving them access to capital, premium global markets, and data-driven farming techniques. Recently, the startup announced an initiative to generate $56 million in carbon revenue for 30,000 Nigerian farmers.