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ImpactAlpha, December 16 — More than half of East Africans depend on agriculture for their livelihoods, but loans to grow their businesses are scarce.
Aceli, launched last year, provides a first-loss cushion of up to 8% to lenders to back high-impact agribusinesses that prioritize gender inclusion, food security and climate resilience.
It has issued 254 loans totaling $30 million to bring new lenders into the marketplace. The impact: $108 million has been injected into rural East African communities, creating full-time jobs for 4,700 people.
The new donor commitments came from the Dutch Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the U.K.’s Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office. Aceli’s has raised $62 million to date.
