The development impact of concessional finance to agri-business - a rapid evidence review

A review of the available evidence on the development impact of different forms of concessional finance provided to businesses in the agriculture sector in sub-Saharan Africa and South Asia. 

For the purposes of this research, concessional finance is defined as that which is extended on terms and/or conditions that are more favourable than those available from the market. This can be achieved, for example, via lower risk adjusted return expectations; terms and conditions that would not be accepted/extended by a commercial financial institution; and/or by providing financing to a borrower/recipient not otherwise served by commercial financing. Risk mitigation tools, guarantees and first-loss products are also included when they are provided on concessional terms.

The report concludes that there are currently not enough high-quality published studies to provide confidence in the quality of evidence available linking the provision of  concessional finance to development impacts.

Commercial Agriculture for Smallholders and Agribusiness (CASA)
The CASA programme seeks to sustainably increase investment in agri-business which benefits the livelihoods and climate resilience of smallholder farmers.