COLEAD

What COLEAD does

COLEAD (Committee Linking Entrepreneurship Agriculture Development) is an international not-for-profit association founded in 1973 and headquartered in Chevilly-Larue, France. Originally established as COLEACP, the organization rebranded to COLEAD in 2022 with a broadened statutory mission focused on increasing agriculture's contribution to the UN Sustainable Development Goals. COLEAD delivers capacity-building, technical assistance, and training services to small and medium enterprises, cooperatives, and public institutions across the African, Caribbean, and Pacific (ACP) regions, with current activity spanning 140+ countries, 500 association members, and a network of 1,200+ experts and trainers. Flagship programmes include Fit for Market Plus (FFM+) — implemented under the OACPS-EU Framework of Development Cooperation — and AGRINFO, a regulatory intelligence service that monitors EU policy changes affecting ACP exporters.

The organization's technology stack centres on a set of integrated digital platforms: a Moodle-based e-learning platform (training.colead.link) with 50,000+ registered users offering self-study and tutored courses across eight themes; a public Resources Library containing 600+ technical references; the AGRINFO regulatory database; a Crop Protection Database compliant with EU MRLs and Codex standards; interactive market analytics dashboards; and the Agrinnovators networking platform. ISO 21001 certification underwrites the vocational-training quality system. Five regional offices — Paris (HQ), Brussels, Nairobi, Lomé, and Santo Domingo — anchor field delivery across ACP geographies.

COLEAD operates a hybrid community-led go-to-market model. Direct revenue is derived primarily from institutional development cooperation funding (notably from the European Union, OACPS, AFD, STDF, and Enabel), supplemented by membership fees from 500 global members. Tutored training is reserved for programme beneficiaries under signed support projects, while self-study courses are free of charge — a freemium structure that uses open-access learning as top-of-funnel acquisition into paid technical-assistance engagements. Distribution combines digital self-serve platforms with field-based direct technical assistance missions targeting ACP agri-food SMEs pursuing certifications such as GLOBALG.A.P., Rainforest Alliance, Organic, and Fairtrade.

Name

COLEAD

Legal name

Committee Linking Agriculture-Entrepreneurship-Development (COLEAD)

Website

https://colead.link

Company type

Private

Founded year

1973

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

51–100 employees

Short description

COLEAD is an international not-for-profit association, founded in 1973 and headquartered in France, that delivers training, technical assistance, and regulatory intelligence to African, Caribbean, and Pacific agri-food SMEs and cooperatives across 140+ countries.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Agricultural Development Services

NAICS

Support Activities for Animal Production (115210)

SIC

Agricultural Services (700)

akta.pro primary industry

Training & Competency Programs (HACCP, PCQI, GMP) (AFALADAK)

akta.pro secondary industry

Regulatory Consulting & Compliance Program Management (FDA/USDA/EFSA) (AFALADAC)

Keywords

• Agricultural development services
• Vocational training programmes
• Technical assistance
• Food safety compliance
• Capacity building

Headquarters

HQ city

Chevilly-larue

HQ country

France

HQ region

Europe

Offices5 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

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

Revenue model

1. Development Cooperation Funding: COLEAD operates as an international not-for-profit association primarily funded through development cooperation programmes. Main funders include the European Union and the Organisation of African, Caribbean and Pacific States (OACPS) through Framework of Development Cooperation. Funding is used to implement programmes like Fit for Market Plus (FFM+) that provide free training and technical assistance to partner-beneficiaries.
2. Membership Fees: COLEAD is a membership-based association with 500 global members including farmers, businesses, professional organisations, technical partners and public institutions. Members pay membership fees to be part of the network.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels8 records

Core offering

COLEAD is an international not-for-profit association that delivers capacity building, vocational training, and technical assistance to agri-food stakeholders in African, Caribbean and Pacific (ACP) countries. Its core programmes — including Fit for Market Plus (FFM+) and AGRINFO — provide free self-paced e-learning, instructor-led training, regulatory intelligence on EU market requirements, certification support (GLOBALG.A.P., Rainforest Alliance, Fairtrade, Organic), and field-based technical assistance to strengthen the competitiveness and sustainability of ACP horticultural and agri-food value chains.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Fit for Market Plus (FFM+) Programme

Quantifiable outcome

• 50,000+ registered users on e-learning platform with open access to self-study courses
• +3 more outcomes

Named customers4 records

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature4 records

Partnerships

Two partnerships are on record, tiered core.

• Organisation of African, Caribbean and Pacific States (OACPS)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartner in Framework of Development Cooperation with the European Union. COLEAD implements programmes within this framework to support ACP agricultural and agri-food sector development.
• COLEAD Members (500 global members)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerMembers include farmers, businesses, professional organisations, technical partners and public institutions from across ACP and EU horticultural value chains. Members benefit from network access, training, and support while contributing to the association's mission.

Scale indicators8 records

Recent moves7 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Broad incumbents

• FAO (Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations): FAO is a UN specialized agency leading international efforts to defeat hunger and improve nutrition through agricultural development. Comparable to COLEAD in providing capacity building, policy support and training for sustainable agriculture and food systems, though at much larger institutional scale and global mandate.
• IFAD (International Fund for Agricultural Development): IFAD is a UN specialized agency and international financial institution focused on eradicating poverty and hunger in rural areas of developing countries. Comparable to COLEAD in financing and supporting agricultural development programmes for smallholder producers in ACP and other developing regions.
• GIZ (Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit): GIZ is a large German federal development agency that implements agricultural, economic and environmental programmes worldwide on behalf of the German government and EU partners. Comparable to COLEAD in delivering capacity building for agricultural value chains and working under EU-funded cooperation frameworks, though at materially larger scale and broader scope.

Direct peers

• Heifer International: Heifer International is a global development nonprofit working to end hunger and poverty through sustainable, smallholder agriculture. Comparable to COLEAD in mission, donor-funded capacity building model, and focus on supporting smallholder farmers with training and market access in developing countries.
• TechnoServe: TechnoServe is an international nonprofit that works with enterprising women and men in the developing world to build competitive farms, businesses and industries. Comparable to COLEAD in delivering agricultural value chain development, training and SME support across Africa and Latin America with donor funding.
• AGRA (Alliance for a Green Revolution in Africa): AGRA is a farmer-focused African agricultural transformation organization working across the continent to improve yields, market access and resilience for smallholder farmers. Comparable to COLEAD in targeting African agri-food stakeholders, delivering training/technical assistance, and depending on institutional donor funding.
• Farm Africa: Farm Africa is a UK-based NGO focused on reducing poverty in eastern Africa by helping farmers grow more, sell more and sell for more. Comparable to COLEAD in delivering agricultural extension, training and market access programmes to smallholder producers in Africa.
• SNV Netherlands Development Organisation: SNV is an international development NGO that delivers capacity building, advisory services and technical assistance across agriculture, energy and water in developing countries. It is directly comparable to COLEAD in mission, donor-funded model, and focus on agricultural value chain development in Africa, Asia and Latin America.

Emerging players

• CTA (Technical Centre for Agricultural and Rural Cooperation): CTA was an ACP-EU institution focused on agricultural capacity building and knowledge dissemination, historically very comparable to COLEAD in serving ACP stakeholders. While the organization closed in 2020, its mandate and audience closely mirror COLEAD's current focus on ACP-EU agricultural development.

Regional players

• Afriq'Access / Proparco agricultural SME initiatives: Proparco, the private sector development arm of AFD, supports agricultural SMEs and value chains in Africa through finance and technical assistance. Comparable to COLEAD in supporting agricultural SMEs in francophone ACP countries and being co-funded through AFD programmes.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat6 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/colead_link
• YouTubeyoutube.com/@COLEAD_Link
• Facebookfacebook.com/COLEAD.link
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/coleadlink

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles10 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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

M&A

Investments

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

Frequently asked questions about COLEAD