Komaza, a forestry company that partners with smallholder farmers in Kenya to plant trees for sale, is among the first beneficiaries of Sh20.6 billion ($200 million) concessional loans lined up for green businesses in seven countries by US-based non-profit Conservation International (CI).
The Kilifi-based firm founded by entrepreneur Tevis Howard has become the country’s largest commercial tree planter, contracting rural small-scale farmers to grow fast-maturing and drought-resistant trees to meet the surging demand for wood in Kenya while reducing pressure on existing forests.
A statement by the NGO indicates that Komaza and other green firms in Colombia, Indonesia and Peru are the initial beneficiaries of the soft loans totalling Sh927 million ($9 million) including those from CI-Ventures, CI’s revolving fund for SMEs and other sources.
“Around the world, entrepreneurs are creating solutions that have the potential to address our planet’s most pressing environmental challenges and tangibly improve hundreds of millions of lives,” said Agustin Silvani, Senior Vice President of Conservation Finance at Conservation International.
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