The British International Investment (BII), the UK’s development finance institution, has committed $7.5 million to Nigerian agri-tech platform, Babban Gona.

The British Deputy High Commissioner in Lagos, Jonny Baxter, disclosed this during a news conference on Tuesday in Lagos.

He said this was to strengthen food security and climate resilience for smallholder farmers in Northern Nigeria

Mr Baxter said the investment would address key challenges facing smallholder farmers, including poor access to finance, quality inputs, agronomic training, and reliable markets.

He said although northern Nigeria produced up to 60 per cent of Nigeria’s maize, smallholder farmers were constrained by low productivity and increasing climate risks such as floods and droughts.

“These constraints worsen post-harvest losses of up to 30 per cent, threatening yields, incomes, and deepening food insecurity in the region, ” he said.

According to him, Babban Gona’s offering is designed to overcome these structural barriers by providing comprehensive end-to-end services for smallholders through its Artificial Intelligence powered platform.

The high commissioner said these included high-quality agricultural inputs, financial credit, training on climate-smart practices, and support with harvest, storage, and access to market.

Mr Baxter noted that Babban Gona’s franchise model would help top farmers run micro-enterprises that provide inputs and financing, supporting them to scale and access local bank funding.

“Through this model, Babban Gona is expected to improve yields, incomes, and climate resilience for around 140,000 smallholder farmers in northern Nigeria by 2029,” he said.

According to Mr Baxter, a core component of the investment was building the climate resilience of smallholders.

He said Babban Gona’s services include climate-smart agricultural inputs such as drought-resilient seeds and multi-peril area yield insurance, which helps farmers recover from climate shocks.

“The investment aligns with BII’s mandate to support rural communities in underserved markets and build on recent investments in innovative agricultural companies such as AgDevCo and Johnvents,” he said.

Speaking, UK Trade Envoy to Nigeria, Florence Eshalomi, expressed pride in standing alongside British International Investment (BII) to announce a $7.5 million investment in Babban Gona, transforming smallholder agriculture in Nigeria.

She explained that the investment would scale an innovative, tech-enabled model that would provide farmers with access to finance, training, and services aimed at boosting yields, increasing incomes, and enhancing climate resilience.

Ms Eshalomi recalled that from early-stage UK support through Propcom Maikarfi to the latest milestone investment, Babban Gona’s growth was a clear example of the possibilities that come with investing in Nigeria’s agricultural future.

She said that the partnership underscored the UK-Nigeria commitment to sustainable and inclusive growth, adding that she was eager to see the impact it would generate.

Commenting, Babban Gona’s managing director, Kola Masha, said the British government had played an instrumental role in the company’s journey by becoming the first institutional investor in its 2013 public debt raise.

He noted that more than a decade later, British International Investment’s decision to commit an amount ten times larger was a strong testament to their shared vision of improving the lives of smallholder farmers.

Mr Masha expressed the organisation’s excitement towards partnering with BII in the next phase of its journey.

He said the organisation was eager to deepen its impact with the ambition of evolving into the world’s most impactful businesses.

(NAN)