An SDG Acceleration Programme by the WFP Innovation Accelerator. Powered by the German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ) and GIZ’s Fund for the Promotion of Innovation in Agriculture (i4Ag)

The Agricultural Innovation for Climate Resilience Programme (AICR), a partnership between the WFP Innovation Accelerator and the Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit GmbH (GIZ) and its Fund for the Promotion of Innovation in Agriculture (i4Ag), commissioned by the German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ), sought scalable innovative solutions that support farmers and other agriculture stakeholders to build capabilities to mitigate effects of climate change on low- and middle-income countries (LMICs). 

Climate change adversely affects agriculture as rising temperatures, changing precipitation patterns, extreme weather events, pests and diseases pose enormous challenges for smallholder farmers and alter growing conditions, leading to decreased crop yield. Climate change aggravates existing inequalities, with small-scale farmers, women and marginalized communities being hit hardest. It is crucial for us to address climate change to secure a sustainable future for agriculture and food systems.

 

What We Offer 

  • Selected teams were invited to participate in a 4-day fully virtual WFP Innovation Bootcamp in July 2023.

  • Selected ventures were able to apply for the WFP Sprint Programme, which is a 6- to 9-month acceleration programme with access to: 

    • Support from the WFP Innovation Accelerator and relevant partners through the duration of their Sprints.

    • Mentorship and access to a global network of relevant stakeholders in the humanitarian, business and international development cooperation space.

    • Up to US$150,000 in equity-free funding for the implementation of a proposed growth plan. 

  • Solutions that have proven their concepts, scale, and value for social impact had the opportunity to qualify for further funding and support in future programmes or events in our alumni community. 

What We Are Looked For

The Agricultural Innovation for Climate Resilience Programme’s priority topics are listed here. Selected teams will be able to further develop their solutions toward scale during the 6- to 9-month WFP Sprint Programme.  

We looked for early-stage solutions that are building value for social impact and can demonstrate that:

  • Are at least at a Minimum Viable Product (MVP) stage. Proof of concept is preferred. 
  • Have conducted pilot(s) or already established feasibility.
  • Have a product or service with a verified potential of commercial value and impact.  

Selected solutions focused on one or more of the priority topics: 

  • Space-efficient Innovations
  • Soil-Saving Innovations
  • Water-Saving Innovations
  • Renewable Energy Solutions

More details about these topics can be found here.

Geographical Focus

Mali, Burkina Faso, Niger, Nigeria, Cameroon, Togo, South Sudan, Ethiopia, Somalia, Kenya, Uganda, Zambia, Malawi, Madagascar. 

Current Sprint Innovations
Sprints are structured support programmes in which selected innovators are guided toward implementing their solutions and testing their hypotheses. The WFP Innovation Accelerator provides tailored support to innovations to roll out or scale their activities and impact. After a competitive selection process and a bootcamp, the following nine ventures were selected for the AICR sprint programme.
Anka
ANKA is a Malagasy company that constructs and operates village electrification mini-grids. Their initiative, AgriGrid, focuses on enhancing agricultural productivity through the implementation of irrigation measures powered by the mini-grid and promoting the groundnut value chain by establishing a production facility that produces affordable groundnut oil. By combining renewable energy sources with value-addition for farmers, the project seeks to reduce the carbon footprint of the rural farmers and increase their income.
aQysta
aQysta is a renewable energy powered processing service for smallholder farmers that shortens the supply chain and reduces the carbon footprint of agriculture. The service consists of two components a solar-powered fixed storage and processing area, for more extensive processing and a mobile processing unit that farmers can use at central locations close to their farming land.
Bebeque BioEnergy
Bebeque’s pilot project introduces an integrated bioenergy solution using a gasification system to convert rice husks into sustainable heat and electricity. The initiative aims to provide affordable rice processing services, addressing challenges in the sector, including rising milling costs and limited access to inputs and markets.
EcoRich
EcoRich’s WasteBot is an household waste decomposer that takes only 24 hours to convert otherwise harmful waste into affordable organic fertilizer. Through Artificial Intelligence-enabled recycling and robotics, decomposer releases required microorganisms into the waste inside the bin, which converts it into organic fertilizer and displays the fertilizer content and nutrients composition. WasteBot also contributes to climate change mitigation by reducing the harmful impacts of mismanaged organic waste.
EnergyAssured (SheFarmsGreen)
Energy Assured Nigeria Limited provides low-income female farmers with a subscription-based mobile solar-powered pump to draw up irrigation water that is affordable, accessible, easy to use and environmentally friendly. Since most smallholder farmers can't afford solar individually, the innovation comprises a business model that groups women smallholder farmers into a cooperative-based clusters through to lower costs and a mobile solar pump. The pump has solar panels placed on locally-made trolleys that can move from one farm or borehole to another and be shared throughout the community.
FarmerLifeLine
Farmer Lifeline offers a patented solar-powered device prioritizing low-income smallholder farmers, enabling them to proactively manage crop pests, diseases, and climate-related challenges. This device swiftly detects and predicts issues, notifying farmers of infestation.
Mechro (Chameleon Tools)
The Chameleon Tool by Mechro utilizes a color-based system, with four indicative colors, to represent soil moisture and nutrient levels in farmers' fields. By using this toolset, smallholder farmers can assess soil water and nutrient levels, make informed decisions on irrigation and thereby optimize resource usage. Additionally, the tools facilitate data collection, transmission to online servers and generate color patterns for government and stakeholders' evaluation, aiding in the development and intervention planning for irrigation schemes. The Chameleon Tool provide a suitable solution for illiterate farmers in Malawi who may struggle with advanced smart irrigation tools. These user-friendly and cost-effective tools are easy to install, calibrate and extract information from.
Smartel Agri-Tech
Smartel Agro leverages Internet of Things technology to enhance the efficiency of hydroponics farming to effectively reduce costs, enhance productivity, minimize water consumption, and reduce carbon emissions. The solution utilizes sensors to identify plant defects and manage risks, enabling the cultivation of fresh produce remotely. Additionally, the hydroponic systems utilize 100 percent organic nutrient content, differentiating them from conventional hydroponic systems.
ThurBiotech
Thur Biotech provides a biocontrol agent that improves crop productivity and enables farmers to cultivate land previously deemed unusable due to acidity and nutrient depletion. The biofertilizer utilizes locally-available materials and easy application methods. It is designed to be more affordable and safer for the environment than chemical alternatives.
UrbanGreens
Urban Greens has developed a decentralized, soil-less, micro-farm concept based on aquaponics. The solution offers a standardized aquaponics micro-farm with solar power back-up and IoT to reliably grow produce and farm fish in urban spaces. The venture seeks to make the product available to urban growers to boost food security and economic activity in urban spaces through climate smart technology. They also have buy-back revenue model to ensure that urban farmers earn income from their produce and that the local markets have access to the harvest.
Learn More
AICR
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