Juhudi is very pleased to announce that Acumen Fund, a nonprofit global venture firm addressing poverty in South Asia and East Africa, and Grameen Foundation, a global non-profit serving the world’s poor through microfinance and technology, today announced a $1.75 million quasi-equity co-investment in Juhudi Kilimo Company Limited (Juhudi Kilimo). The Acumen Fund and Grameen Foundation co-investment of $1.2 million and $550,000, respectively, will help Juhudi Kilimo grow its portfolio and serve more farmers, hire new staff, and improve its efficiency across its seven branches.
“After a decade of investing patient capital in companies providing innovative solutions to poverty, Acumen Fund has learned that people want choice, not charity, an opportunity to better their own lives and communities, which is exactly what Juhudi Kilimo provides through its products and services for smallholder farmers,” said Jacqueline Novogratz, CEO, Acumen Fund.
“Grameen Foundation remains committed to expanding access to financial services for the poorest people, and we are pleased to support Juhudi Kilimo’s pioneering work with smallholder farmers working in Kenya’s remote rural areas,” said Alex Counts, president and CEO of Grameen Foundation. “We also applaud it for adopting the Progress out of Poverty Index, a social performance tool that will provide its management and stakeholders with valuable information on the clients it is reaching and changes in their economic well-being over time. We are also pleased to partner with Acumen Fund, since joining forces with like-minded, entrepreneurial social change organizations is our preferred approach.”
For more information, see Acumen Fund and Grameen Foundation Invest in Agricultural Microfinance Company, Juhudi Kilimo Company Limited.
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