Barclays starts agribusiness unit with eye on SMEs

What you need to know:

Speaking at the bank’s headquarters, Barclays managing director Jeremy Awori said the unit will loan out money from a Sh30 billion kitty set aside for small and medium enterprises.
The one-year programme is meant to help young farmers from Kajiado, Bomet, Nyeri, Kirinyaga, Embu and Kiambu counties to develop strong businesses while linking them to information, capital and markets.

Barclays Bank of Kenya has started an agribusiness unit to finance firms in the agricultural value chain.

The lender yesterday rolled out the scheme that was developed with its sister firm, Absa, a South Africa-based lender.

Speaking at the bank’s headquarters, Barclays managing director Jeremy Awori said the unit will loan out money from a Sh30 billion kitty set aside for small and medium enterprises.

Mr Awori said the bank will also channel money through corporate lending for bigger projects including setting up of processing plants.

“We are taking a multifaceted approach underpinned by the provision of financial solutions, market access opportunities and knowledge exchange,” said Mr Awori.

“We have recruited a team of agricultural specialists, who understand the variable and cyclical nature of agribusiness, to help us tailor-make flexible and cost effective financial solutions that will cater for the entire value chain,” he added.

Wholesome support
The new unit comes after the bank set up an asset financing product that can go into lending for machinery and bancassurance products.

Barclays last month launched a Sh25 million partnership with Technoserve to support over 240 youth-owned agribusiness enterprises under the African Young Agripreneurship Programme (AYAP).

The one-year programme is meant to help young farmers from Kajiado, Bomet, Nyeri, Kirinyaga, Embu and Kiambu counties to develop strong businesses while linking them to information, capital and markets.

“Our interest is not to just to lend money. We will walk the whole journey offering important information and guidance on such issues as demand and supply forces, commercial viability, value addition, access to export markets and so on. Our specialists will offer expertise across the value chain giving entrepreneurs in this sector a wholesome support system,” said Mr Awori.

He added that the bank is determined to play its part in making Kenya the region’s bread basket and a net food exporter as envisioned in the Vision 2030 economic blueprint.