Africa Harvest

What Africa Harvest does

Africa Harvest Biotech Foundation International is a non-profit agricultural development organization founded in 2002 by Dr. Florence Wambugu and headquartered in Nairobi, Kenya, with regional offices in Midrand, South Africa and Lusaka, Zambia. The organization develops and disseminates climate-smart agricultural technologies, including drought-resistant crop varieties, gene editing applications, and sustainable farming practices, targeting smallholder farmers and agribusiness SMEs across East Africa, Southern Africa, and increasingly West and Central Africa. Its program portfolio spans six core areas — Women & Youth Integration, Training & Skills Transfer, Scaling Innovative Technologies, Agricultural Market Systems Development, Climate Action and Natural Resource Management, and Food and Nutritional Security — plus flagship initiatives such as the US$50M Agri-Finance Accelerator Zambia (AFAZ) and the Drought-Tolerant Crops for Youth Jobs Creation project.

The organization operates a grant-funded model with no commercial product pricing; revenue derives from international development donors including the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation (a disclosed USD 21M grant in 2005), the EU-EAC, Green Climate Fund, USAID, and World Bank. Distribution is achieved through direct field operations across 12+ Kenyan counties and multi-country programs, supplemented by Rural Enterprise Development (RED) Hubs, Trainer-of-Trainers networks, farmer field schools, and partnerships with research institutions (CSIR, ARC, University of Pretoria) and government extension systems. The 2023-2027 strategic plan targets 10 million beneficiaries across Africa, a scale-up from the 600,000+ farmers impacted over the organization's 21-year operating history.

Governance is provided by an independent Board of Directors chaired by Prof. Abdulai Jalloh (Director General of SLARI), with country-level boards in South Africa and Zambia. Africa Harvest maintains wholly-owned regional operating entities in both countries and has accumulated awards including the 2008 Norwegian YARA Prize for its founder. The organization employs 11-50 staff with a core Kenya HQ team of approximately 17 individuals spanning leadership, program management, M&E, finance, gender and inclusion, and field operations.

Name

Africa Harvest

Legal name

Africa Harvest Biotech Foundation International

Website

https://africaharvest.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

2002

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Africa Harvest is a Kenya-based non-profit founded in 2002 that develops and disseminates climate-smart agricultural biotechnologies, drought-resistant crop varieties, and agri-finance programs to improve food security for smallholder farmers across East and Southern Africa.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Agricultural Development Services

NAICS

Grantmaking and Giving Services (81321)

akta.pro primary industry

Agriculture & Food Security Development (BPAGABAB)

akta.pro secondary industries

Sustainable Agriculture & Food Systems (BPAGAGAI), Rural Livelihoods & Economic Empowerment (BPAGABAA), Nutrition & Food Security (Global Health) NGOs (HLAJAKAH)

Keywords

• Agricultural biotechnology
• Smallholder farmer support
• Climate-smart agriculture
• Food security programs
• Agricultural value chains

Headquarters

HQ city

Nairobi

HQ country

Kenya

HQ region

Africa

Offices3 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure

Revenue model

1. Grant Funding and Donations: Africa Harvest operates as a non-profit organization primarily funded through grants from international development organizations, foundations, and government agencies. Major funders include Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, Green Climate Fund, EU-EAC, and various development partners. The organization implements donor-funded projects across East Africa, West Africa, SADC, and Central Africa.
2. Agri-Finance Accelerator Zambia (AFAZ) Program: A 3-year, US$50M initiative designed to unlock financing for smallholder farmers and agribusiness SMEs. The program expands access to tailored agri-loans and digital finance, strengthens SMEs with financial literacy and business planning, and builds aggregation hubs and contract farming models.

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels7 records

Core offering

Africa Harvest disseminates appropriate innovative agricultural technologies and institutional approaches across the value chain to improve the livelihoods of rural communities, particularly smallholder farmers. The organization delivers programs in crop and livestock value chains, climate-smart agriculture, market systems development, financial inclusion, and women and youth empowerment, funded primarily through grants from foundations and development agencies.

Product overview

Africa Harvest Biotech Foundation International operates as a nonprofit agricultural organization offering multiple programmatic initiatives rather than a unified software product. The organization provides six core programs: Women & Youth Integration (employment and empowerment), Training & Skills Transfer (Technical Services Unit), Scaling Innovative Technologies (agricultural biotech including gene editing), Agricultural Market Systems Development, Climate Action and Natural Resource Management, and Food and Nutritional Security. Additionally, the organization runs the Agri-Finance Accelerator Zambia (AFAZ), a US$50M financing initiative, and the Drought-Tolerant Crops (DTCs) for Youth Jobs Creation project. These programs collectively aim to improve livelihoods of rural communities through science, technology, and innovative institutional approaches.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Women & Youth Integration Program Program focused on creating employment opportunities for youth and empowering women in African agriculture through capacity-building initiatives and access to financial resources.
• Training & Skills Transfer Services Technical Services Unit providing training and capacity-building services in agriculture to staff, project beneficiaries, trainers of trainers, and development sector professionals.
• Scaling Innovative Technologies Program Program advancing agricultural technology including mechanization, genetically improved crops, conventional breeding, gene editing, irrigation technologies, and climate-smart farming techniques.
• Agricultural Market Systems Development Program focused on improving market access, value chain enhancement, market information dissemination, financial inclusion, quality standards, and public-private partnerships.
• Climate Action and Natural Resource Management Program developing drought-resistant crop varieties, promoting protective and regenerative farming practices, market mechanisms for climate-friendly goods, and carbon financing initiatives.
• Food and Nutritional Security Program Program focusing on nutrition-sensitive interventions, seed systems, sustainable farming practices, diversified crop varieties, and biofortified seeds to improve nutritional outcomes.
• Agri-Finance Accelerator Zambia (AFAZ) A 3-year, US$50M initiative designed to unlock financing for smallholder farmers and agribusiness SMEs across seven provinces in Zambia, including tailored agri-loans, digital finance, and aggregation hubs.
• Drought-Tolerant Crops (DTCs) for Youth Jobs Creation Project 5-year project empowering over 120,000 young people and women across semi-arid regions in Kenya with skills for profitable agriculture using drought-tolerant crops.

Quantifiable outcome

• 600,000+ farmers impacted across Africa
• +4 more outcomes

Named customers4 records

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature5 records

Scale indicators8 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• KickStart International: Nonprofit that designs and distributes low-cost irrigation and agricultural technologies to smallholder farmers in Africa. Notable overlap: Africa Harvest's Director of Finance previously led finance at KickStart, indicating similar operational scale and mission space.
• African Agricultural Technology Foundation (AATF): Africa-based nonprofit facilitating access to agricultural technologies for smallholder farmers. Direct peer in technology transfer focus, geographic coverage, and agricultural biotechnology mission; Africa Harvest's Director of Finance previously worked at AATF.
• Heifer International: Global nonprofit working to end hunger and poverty through sustainable agriculture and livestock value chains. Comparable scope and beneficiary focus, particularly relevant given Africa Harvest's livestock value chain work.
• TechnoServe: International nonprofit working with enterprising people in the developing world to build competitive farms, businesses, and industries. Direct peer in agricultural value chain development, SME support, and smallholder market system interventions.
• Farm Africa: UK-based agricultural development NGO working with smallholder farmers across East Africa on climate-smart agriculture, market access, and value chain development. Direct peer in operating geographies, target beneficiaries, and program design.
• Sasakawa Africa Association: Japan-supported agricultural development NGO working across sub-Saharan Africa on smallholder productivity, extension services, and value chain development. Direct peer in operating model, target geographies, and farmer training programs.
• One Acre Fund: Large agricultural development NGO providing financing, training, and market access to smallholder farmers across East Africa. Direct peer in mission, target beneficiary (smallholder farmers), and operating model of providing agricultural services and inputs to rural farming communities.
• AGRA (Alliance for a Green Revolution in Africa): Major African agricultural development organization focused on improving smallholder productivity, market access, and policy reform across the continent. Direct peer addressing similar value chain development and food security challenges with shared donor base.
• Self Help Africa: International development NGO working with smallholder farmers in Africa to improve food security, incomes, and livelihoods. Direct peer in target geographies (Kenya, Zambia, West Africa), beneficiary segment, and agricultural development programs.

Broad incumbents

• CGIAR / ICRISAT: Global agricultural research partnership including centers like ICRISAT (sorghum, millet) that develop drought-tolerant crop varieties and work across Africa. Broader incumbent with overlapping technical focus on drought-resistant crop research and Africa-wide operations.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/africaharvestke
• YouTubeyoutube.com/channel/UCNGmKkrPUcACP7gk4mWA0Yg
• Facebookfacebook.com/AfricaHarvestIntl
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/africa-harvest-biotech-foundation-international
• Instagraminstagram.com/africa_harvest

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles17 records

Subsidiaries2 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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M&A

Investments

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

Frequently asked questions about Africa Harvest