Asawaba Business Solutions produces and aggregates agricultural commodities from smallholder farmers for sale to processing industries. It is one of the largest aggregators and suppliers of maize to Agricare Limited. The company also supplies rice to AVNASH Limited. Asawaba Business Solutions works with 1,350 smallholder out-growers (40% women) on 4,050 acres of land in six districts. The company provides its out-growers with agro-inputs and services such as new methods of farming and ploughing. In 2015 Asawaba Business Solutions was awarded the best performing Farmer Leadership company by ADVANCE. It joined the MADE programme in 2014 and in 2018 aggregated 7,490 MT of maize and rice.
MADE interventions
- Recruited, trained and deployed five Farm Enterprise Advisors (FEAs) and FEA managers.
- Facilitated links with tractor services.
- Introduced insurance for farmers.
- Supported underserved farmers using extension services from the Ministry of Food and Agriculture.
- Provided demonstrations and training.
- Facilitated relationships with other MADE partners.
- Facilitated/strengthened commercial partnerships with other enterprises.
Impacts
- Increased smallholder outreach from 450 in 2014 to 1,070 in 2018.
- Improved the rate of recovery of input support from 25% to 50% for farmers.
- Increased smallholder farmers’ access to inputs and services on credit.
- Increased understanding of good agricultural practices and proper application of agro-inputs.
- Facilitated timely application of agro-inputs.
- Raised yields for smallholder farmers from an average of 10 to 17 bags (100 kg) per acre, between 2014 and 2018.
