A blended finance debt vehicle targeting West African agriculture, piloted in Côte d’Ivoire’s cocoa value chain with de-risking tools and technical assistance. The initiative is a USD 300 million partnership between the French banking group Société Générale and Ksapa, a corporation that provides scalable solutions to help businesses meet the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).

Rural communities are bearing the brunt of the climate crisis and need medium-term financing to implement adaptation tools that protect agricultural land and food systems from the biggest shocks. West African smallholder farmers struggle to access the necessary funds, with only 2% of agricultural finance needs currently met. This gap exists primarily due to farmers’ high-risk profiles spanning unstable incomes, a lack of collateral, and limited financial literacy. As a result, financial institutions are reluctant to lend, leaving smallholders without the resources needed to build resilience and adopt sustainable practices.

IREN AGRI provides loans to cooperatives and small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) for equipment, new activities, and capacity building, with industrial partners securing off-take agreements. Corporate commitments and carbon credit valuations back loan repayments. De-risking includes securing Development Financial Institution (DFI) guarantees and technical support. Société Générale leads fund management, while Ksapa offers technical assistance and digital tools for implementation.

IREN AGRI targets cooperatives and small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) across agricultural value chains, focusing on climate adaptation and mitigation strategies like agroforestry, soil health improvement, and water optimization. These measures aim to enhance climate resilience, carbon sequestration, and biodiversity. The initiative also promotes socio-economic development by improving financial inclusion, increasing revenues, and supporting women and youth, while fostering sustainable livelihoods and community resilience.