AFEX advocates tech investments to boost agriculture value chain

FOR AFRICA’S AGRI CULTURE SECTOR TO BETTER UNLOCK AND ENJOY THE BENEFIT OF INTRA REGIONAL TRADE, there is a massive need for the continent to deepen investments in infrastructure, technology and strategic platforms that lead to an organised marketplace that benefits all stages of the agricultural value chain.

AFEX, Nigeria’s leading commodities market player, made the assertion when it hosted a side event during the recent 2022 Africa Tech Summit in Nairobi, Kenya, to address the role and influence of technology on agricultural trade infrastructure.

The side-event, themed, “Code Cash Crop: The Role of Technology in Disrupting Agriculture Trade Infrastructure”, analysed the impact of technology on agriculture trade infrastructure and how it has improved market opportunities for producers, facilitated participation in supply chain activities for various levels of players and increased transparency and security for investors on both ends of the market.

Speaking during the AFEX masterclass, Akinyinka Akintunde, the company’s chief operating officer, said that technology will be key in promoting platform models for agriculture trade that can focus on providing access to logistics and delivery, access to advisory services, access to inputs, and access to the market, which are all key to the future of agriculture in Africa.

On how AFEX’s Code Cash

Crop model has effectively harnessed the intersection of technology, finance, and agriculture, Akintunde explained that it helped create a convergence point for conversations that integrate the technology, finance, and agriculture sectors.

According to Akintunde, the first Code Cash Crop event featured corporates and entrepreneurs from the banking, technology, and agriculture sectors, who contributed ideas to boost the country’s agriculture sector’s competitiveness.

He noted that in its second year, the Code Cash Crop centred on providing payment alternatives for rural agrarian areas, allowing more rural residents to become financially integrated.

Akintunde further disclosed that the model currently in its third year, aims to continue the conversations from the Africa Tech Summit workshop by inviting ideation and solutions, including a hackathon component around optimising trade infrastructure through the participation of the technology, finance, and agriculture sectors within a timeline of March to May 2022.

Bolstered by an existing supply chain infrastructure of over 100 warehouses and digital trading platforms that link investors with producers and processors, AFEX said it is well-positioned to roll out workable pathways to drive the convergence that will build prosperity alongside creating immense value in the agriculture sector.