Ghana Incentive-Based Risk Sharing System for Agric Lending

Agricultural Credit Guarantee Servicesgirsal.com

GIRSAL is a Ghanaian state-owned, non-banking financial institution wholly owned by the Government of Ghana, established in 2019, that provides up to 70% credit risk guarantees and technical assistance to 40 participating financial institutions to expand lending to Ghana's agricultural sector.

Company typePrivate
Founded2019
HeadquartersAccra, Ghana
Headcount11–50
GTM typeB2B
OfferingServices

What Ghana Incentive-Based Risk Sharing System for Agric Lending does

GIRSAL Ltd is a non-banking financial institution wholly owned by the Government of Ghana through the Ministry of Finance, established in 2019 and headquartered in Accra. The company operates a national credit risk-sharing mechanism designed to de-risk agricultural lending by Ghanaian financial institutions; its core product, the Agricultural Credit Risk Guarantee Scheme, covers up to 70% of loan principal on qualifying agricultural loans to participating financial institutions (PFIs). GIRSAL has signed Master Agreements with 40 PFIs spanning commercial banks, rural and community banks (via the ARB Apex Bank), and non-bank financial institutions, and has facilitated GHS 1.81 billion in guaranteed agricultural loans to 5,623 agribusinesses across 88 districts in 15 regions as of April 30, 2026.

The product set sits on a platform-plus-modules architecture: alongside the core Credit Risk Guarantee, GIRSAL administers or has administered the Ghana Cares Guarantee Scheme (COVID-response, concluded December 2022), the Interest Rate Subsidy Initiative (50% subsidy on interest for Rice & Soya, Poultry, and Tomato value chains), the Fidelity Young Entrepreneurs Initiative (concessionary 10% loans and 0.25% fees for youth-led agribusinesses), and the Loan Portfolio Guarantee operationalized in June 2025 under the FIRST+II Programme with Mastercard Foundation. Supporting modules include Technical and Advisory Services — encompassing the Agriculture and Agribusiness Lending Course (879 professionals trained from 66 institutions across 19 cohorts), pre-application assessment and post-disbursement monitoring, and the web-based Agriculture and Agribusiness Knowledge Portal featuring 33 commodity fact sheets and over 700 registered institutional users — together with a stakeholder convening platform (Agribusiness Forum) for sector dialogue.

GIRSAL generates revenue from guarantee fees (1% on new applications comprising 0.25% processing and 0.75% guarantee fees; 0.75% on annual renewals), management fees for administering government programs such as the IRS, and reduced fees for targeted initiatives. The guarantees issued by GIRSAL carry a zero percent risk rating from the Bank of Ghana, and the institution is capitalized with seed funding from the Bank of Ghana and the African Development Bank. Its go-to-market operates exclusively through a B2B partner distribution model — financial institutions are the direct customers, with agribusinesses reached indirectly via PFIs — supplemented by training, the Knowledge Portal, and stakeholder forums. Reported impact includes USD 25 million+ in foreign exchange generated through export-related projects and reductions of 1%–6% in effective interest rates on guaranteed loans.

Ghana Incentive-Based Risk Sharing System for Agric Lending firmographics

Firmographics

Name: Ghana Incentive-Based Risk Sharing System for Agric Lending
Legal name: GIRSAL Ltd
Website: https://girsal.com
Company type: Private
Founded year: 2019
Operating status: Operating
Headcount range: 11–50 employees
Short description: GIRSAL is a Ghanaian state-owned, non-banking financial institution wholly owned by the Government of Ghana, established in 2019, that provides up to 70% credit risk guarantees and technical assistance to 40 participating financial institutions to expand lending to Ghana's agricultural sector.
Ownership category
akta.pro rank

Ghana Incentive-Based Risk Sharing System for Agric Lending industry classification

Industry

Product category: Agricultural Credit Guarantee Services
NAICS: Other Nondepository Credit Intermediation (52229), Credit Intermediation and Related Activities (522)
SIC: Federal & Federally-Sponsored Credit Agencies (6111), Short-Term Business Credit Institutions (6153)
akta.pro primary industry: SBA/Government-Backed & Development Finance Loans (FSAKAGAI)
akta.pro secondary industries: National Development Banks & State Development Finance Institutions (DFIs) (BPADACAC), Lending & Credit Disbursements (FSAMAKAH)

Keywords

Agricultural credit guarantees
Risk sharing finance
Agribusiness lending
Credit risk insurance
Agricultural finance solutions

Where Ghana Incentive-Based Risk Sharing System for Agric Lending is headquartered

Location

Headquarters

HQ city: Accra
HQ country: Ghana
HQ region: Africa

Offices1 record

Markets served

Ghana Incentive-Based Risk Sharing System for Agric Lending business model

Business model

GTM type: B2B
Offering type: Services
Cost components: Personnel, Operations, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales, Others

Revenue model

Credit Risk Guarantee Fees: GIRSAL charges fees for credit risk guarantees issued to participating financial institutions. New applications attract a fee of 1% of the guaranteed value (0.25% processing fee and 0.75% guarantee fee). Renewals attract 0.75% on the remaining guaranteed value. For the Fidelity Young Entrepreneurs Initiative, guarantee and management fees are reduced to 0.25% per annum.
Ghana CARES Guarantee Scheme: Government of Ghana COVID-19 response program administered through GIRSAL, providing credit guarantees to sustain businesses post-pandemic. The two-year scheme concluded in December 2022, supporting medium and large businesses with guarantee cover up to 70% of loan value or maximum GH¢15 million.
Interest Rate Subsidy Administration: Government of Ghana intervention providing 50% subsidy on financial institutions' interest charges for qualified agribusiness loans in selected value chains (Rice & Soya, Poultry, Tomato). GIRSAL manages disbursement of subsidy to beneficiary financial institutions.
Fidelity Young Entrepreneurs Initiative: Partnership with Fidelity Bank providing seed capital and soft loans at 10% per annum concessionary rate to youth-led agribusinesses. GIRSAL provides technical support and credit risk guarantees. Initial pilot of GHS 1 million expanded to GHS 10 million allocation.

Pricing tiers

Model	Billing	Price
Subscription	Annual	Credit Risk Guarantee - New Applications
Subscription	Annual	Credit Risk Guarantee - Renewals
Other	Annual	Fidelity Young Entrepreneurs Initiative
Other	Multi-year contract	Interest Rate Subsidy (IRS)

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels9 records

Ghana Incentive-Based Risk Sharing System for Agric Lending product offering

Product offering

Core offering

GIRSAL provides credit risk guarantees of up to 70% on agricultural loan principal to Participating Financial Institutions (PFIs) in Ghana, alongside technical advisory services, capacity building programs, and a knowledge portal to enable banks, rural banks, and non-bank financial institutions to confidently lend to agribusinesses across all agricultural value chains.

Product overview

GIRSAL operates as a platform-plus-modules organization centered on its core Credit Risk Guarantee (CRG) scheme, which provides up to 70% coverage on agricultural loans to de-risk lending by financial institutions. The product portfolio includes specialized guarantee products: Ghana Cares Guarantee Scheme (COVID-19 response, now concluded), Interest Rate Subsidy Initiative (50% interest subsidy for priority value chains), Fidelity Young Entrepreneurs Initiative (youth-focused concessionary financing), and the newer Loan Portfolio Guarantee (LPG) under FIRST+II Programme. Supporting modules include Technical and Advisory Services (delivering the Agriculture and Agribusiness Finance Course and direct loan pre-assessment support), the Agriculture and Agribusiness Finance Knowledge Portal (web-based commodity information resource), and the Agribusiness Public-Private Partnership Platform (stakeholder convening forum). Together these components form an integrated agricultural finance ecosystem.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

Agricultural Credit Risk Guarantee (CRG) Scheme Core credit risk guarantee product providing up to 70% coverage on agricultural loan principal to participating financial institutions, reducing lending risk and stimulating increased agricultural financing in Ghana. Valid for 12 months and renewable annually for loans exceeding 1 year tenor.
Ghana Cares Guarantee Scheme (GCGS) Government COVID-19 pandemic response intervention providing credit guarantees to sustain medium and large businesses affected by the pandemic, with maximum guarantee cover of 70% or GH₵15 million per entity.
Interest Rate Subsidy Initiative (IRS) Government of Ghana intervention under Ghana CARES providing 50% subsidy on financial institutions' interest charges for qualified agribusiness loans in rice, soya, poultry, and tomato value chains.
Fidelity Young Entrepreneurs Initiative (FYEI) Partnership with Fidelity Bank providing seed capital and concessionary loans at 10% per annum to youth-led agribusinesses (ages 18-40), with reduced guarantee and management fees of 0.25% per annum.
Loan Portfolio Guarantee (LPG) Risk-sharing initiative under FIRST+II Programme partially covering eligible loan portfolios of financial institutions lending to agriculture MSMEs, reducing credit risk and strengthening institutional confidence.

Quantifiable outcome

GHS 1.81 billion in guaranteed agricultural loans facilitated
+7 more outcomes

Companies that use Ghana Incentive-Based Risk Sharing System for Agric Lending

Customer profile

Named customers11 records

Segments5 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Ghana Incentive-Based Risk Sharing System for Agric Lending technology and API

Technology

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API: No
API docs
API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature3 records

Ghana Incentive-Based Risk Sharing System for Agric Lending partnerships and signals

Strategic signal

Partnerships

Eleven partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

Development Bank Ghana (DBG)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerDBG provides long-term wholesale financing, credit guarantees, and services to financial institutions to increase lending to priority sectors including agriculture. GIRSAL provides technical support to assess agricultural loan applications submitted to DBG, supports applicant FIs technically, and issues credit guarantees on qualifying loans. Both organizations collaborate on capacity building and innovative interventions to improve agriculture financing.
National Banking College (NBC)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerJointly developed the Agriculture and Agribusiness Lending Training Course for Financial Institutions, launched in 2020 with AGRA funding. The program has trained 700 mid-level staff from 47 financial institutions including universal banks.
ARB Apex BankcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartnership to de-risk agricultural financing by Ghana's rural and community banks through capacity building, technical support, and credit guarantees. Aims to optimize expert resources of both parties to promote investment in the agricultural sector and provide institutional capacity for RCBs.
Ghana Commodity Exchange (GCX)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCollaboration provides GCX access to all GIRSAL partner financial institutions and supports development of Aggregation and Warehouse Receipt financing products for smallholder farmers. GIRSAL provides Credit Risk Guarantee cover and Technical Assistance to partner FIs financing GCX aggregators, brokers, and smallholder farmers.
Ghana Agricultural Insurance Pool (GAIP)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartnership to sensitize financial institutions on agricultural insurance and provide technical advisory services on agricultural finance. GAIP pilots weather-index insurance schemes that automatically pay farmers when climate thresholds are breached.
Rabob Partnerships B.V.coreTechnology or IntegrationTechnical support partnership to offer agribusiness services to Partner financial institutions. Focuses on developing comprehensive agribusiness strategies including Agribusiness Lending Systems for Financial Institutions. Provides guidance on structuring agribusiness units, prioritizing sectors for impact, and creating tailored financing products. Includes staff training in credit risk assessment and hands-on mentoring.
Kwae Capital Partners LtdcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerNew partnership in 2026 implementing the Agroforestry Finance Catalyst Initiative (AFCI) under Partnerships for Forests (P4F) program. Introduces enhanced focus on tree crop value chains (cocoa, cashew, rubber, oil palm) and intensive ESG and forest-positive finance principles. Supporting development of new training modules, applied case studies, and Tree Crop Finance Clinic.
Fidelity Bank GhanacoreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorPartnership implementing the agribusiness component of the Fidelity Young Entrepreneurs' Initiative, a program to empower youth-led businesses. GIRSAL provides technical support and credit risk guarantees to qualified agribusinesses. Initiative expanded to GHS 10 million allocation with GHS 5 million dedicated to agribusinesses.
CapPlus ExchangecoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerImplementing partner for the FIRST+II Loan Portfolio Guarantee Programme. GIRSAL serves as implementing institution for LPG in Ghana, with CapPlus Exchange supporting the market-building initiative.
Ghana Export Promotion Authority (GEPA)minorStrategic or Co-development PartnerGovernment agency that coordinated exhibition space at Fruit Logistica 2026 alongside FAGE. Supports Ghanaian participants at international trade events.
Federation of Associations of Ghanaian Exporters (FAGE)minorStrategic or Co-development PartnerIndustry association coordinating Ghanaian participation at Fruit Logistica 2026. GIRSAL met with FAGE President Davies Korboe to discuss supporting Fruits and Vegetables sector through Credit Risk Guarantee and Technical Assistance.

Scale indicators13 records

Recent moves7 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Ghana Incentive-Based Risk Sharing System for Agric Lending competitors and assessment

Company assessment

Direct peers

Nigeria Incentive-Based Risk Sharing System for Agricultural Lending (NIRSAL): Nigeria's direct counterpart to GIRSAL, providing credit risk guarantees and technical assistance to Participating Financial Institutions to increase agricultural lending. Operates with a similar model (partial credit guarantees + capacity building), making it the closest international peer.
Development Bank Ghana (DBG): Ghana's national development finance institution providing wholesale financing and credit guarantees to FIs for priority sectors including agriculture. Operates within the same Ghanaian ecosystem as GIRSAL and shares a strategic partnership for credit guarantees and capacity building.

Regional players

Tanzania Agricultural Development Bank (TADB): State-owned agricultural development bank in Tanzania providing credit and capacity-building services to agricultural value chain actors. Comparable in mandate (state-backed agricultural finance) but operates primarily as a direct lender rather than a guarantee scheme.
Agricultural Finance Corporation (AFC) Kenya: Kenya's state-owned agricultural finance institution providing credit and development finance to the agricultural sector. Similar government-backed DFI mandate but operates as a direct lender, not a guarantee facility.

Broad incumbents

African Development Bank (AfDB): Continental DFI and one of GIRSAL's seed funders. Comparable as a multilateral institution providing credit guarantees, concessional finance, and technical assistance for African agricultural development, though at a vastly larger scale and broader mandate.
BlueOrchard Finance: Switzerland-based impact investment manager pioneering inclusive finance, including agricultural lending facilities across emerging markets. Comparable in mobilizing institutional capital into agricultural credit, but as an asset manager rather than a public DFI.

Others

Mastercard Foundation Fund for Rural Prosperity: Major donor behind GIRSAL's FIRST+II Loan Portfolio Guarantee Programme. Comparable as a blended finance provider enabling rural and agricultural lending across Africa, and a key funding partner for similar guarantee vehicles.

Emerging players

ACRE Africa (Agriculture and Climate Risk Enterprise): Pan-African insurance and risk management company for agricultural value chains, partnering with insurers, lenders, and governments. Comparable in providing risk-mitigation infrastructure for agricultural lending, though focused on insurance rather than credit guarantees.
Root Capital: U.S.-based non-profit agricultural impact investor providing credit and financial capacity to small and growing agricultural businesses in Africa and Latin America. Comparable mission of de-risking agricultural finance, but operates as a direct lender rather than guarantor.
IDH Farmfit Fund: Blended finance vehicle managed by IDH that de-risks smallholder-inclusive value chains by providing technical assistance and risk-sharing capital to agribusinesses and their financiers. Comparable structure of guarantees + TA to unlock commercial lending.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

Ghana Incentive-Based Risk Sharing System for Agric Lending compliance and trust

Trust signal

Compliance1 record

Ghana Incentive-Based Risk Sharing System for Agric Lending financial estimates

Financial estimate

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Ghana Incentive-Based Risk Sharing System for Agric Lending leadership team

Management profile

Number of profiles

Profiles17 records

Ghana Incentive-Based Risk Sharing System for Agric Lending funding detail

Funding detail

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Ghana Incentive-Based Risk Sharing System for Agric Lending M&A and investment

M&A and investment

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Ghana Incentive-Based Risk Sharing System for Agric Lending

What does Ghana Incentive-Based Risk Sharing System for Agric Lending do?

Is Ghana Incentive-Based Risk Sharing System for Agric Lending a public or private company?

Ghana Incentive-Based Risk Sharing System for Agric Lending is a private company. It is classified as state government owned and is currently operating.

When was Ghana Incentive-Based Risk Sharing System for Agric Lending founded?

Ghana Incentive-Based Risk Sharing System for Agric Lending was founded in 2019. It employs 11 to 50 people.

Where is Ghana Incentive-Based Risk Sharing System for Agric Lending based?

Ghana Incentive-Based Risk Sharing System for Agric Lending is headquartered in Accra, Ghana, in the Africa region.

How does Ghana Incentive-Based Risk Sharing System for Agric Lending make money?

Four revenue lines are on record. Credit Risk Guarantee Fees are the primary driver. The others are ghana CARES Guarantee Scheme, interest Rate Subsidy Administration and fidelity Young Entrepreneurs Initiative.

Who are Ghana Incentive-Based Risk Sharing System for Agric Lending's main competitors?

Direct peers on record are Nigeria Incentive-Based Risk Sharing System for Agricultural Lending (NIRSAL) and Development Bank Ghana (DBG). Regional players are Tanzania Agricultural Development Bank (TADB) and Agricultural Finance Corporation (AFC) Kenya. Broad incumbents are African Development Bank (AfDB) and BlueOrchard Finance. Mastercard Foundation Fund for Rural Prosperity is listed as an others. Emerging players are ACRE Africa (Agriculture and Climate Risk Enterprise), Root Capital and IDH Farmfit Fund.

Does Ghana Incentive-Based Risk Sharing System for Agric Lending have an API?

No public API is recorded for Ghana Incentive-Based Risk Sharing System for Agric Lending.

What industry is Ghana Incentive-Based Risk Sharing System for Agric Lending in?

Ghana Incentive-Based Risk Sharing System for Agric Lending's product category is Agricultural Credit Guarantee Services. Its primary akta.pro industry code is FSAKAGAI, SBA/Government-Backed & Development Finance Loans, with a secondary code of BPADACAC, National Development Banks & State Development Finance Institutions (DFIs). Its NAICS code is 52229 and its SIC code is 6111.