IFC, a member of the World Bank Group, and the private sector window of the Global Agriculture and Food Security Program, will invest $9.2m in a program with KCB Bank Rwanda to help Rwandan farmers’ cooperatives gain access to financing and training they need to expand food production.

KCB Bank Rwanda will offer affordable financing to 11 farmer cooperatives in eastern Rwanda, helping more than 12,000 small-holder famers gain access to improved seeds and fertilizer and to training in better farming practices.

The cooperatives will supply maize and soybeans to a food processing plant that aims to produce fortified cereals for people suffering from malnutrition—particularly babies and children.

“Supporting local grain production can have a significant impact on food security in Rwanda, a country where 45% of people live in poverty and malnutrition is widespread,” said Ethiopis Tafara, IFC Vice President for Corporate Risk and Sustainability.

“IFC and GAFSP’s partnership with KCB Bank Rwanda will play an important role in expanding financing for farmers,” he said.

The bank’s loans will help farmers gain working capital for seeds, fertilizers, land preparation, weeding, and harvesting, among other things.

In addition, farmers will receive technical advice through a comprehensive advisory services program provided by IFC and other partners. IFC, with support from GAFSP, plans to support the construction and operation of the processing plant.

KCB Bank Rwanda’s Managing Director, Maurice Toroitich, said: “Access to financing will enable farmers to improve maize and soybean productivity, earn more income, and support their families. KCB Bank Rwanda is pleased to support farmers in partnership with IFC.”

GAFSP is a global effort that pools donor resources to fund programs that increase agricultural productivity in countries with the highest rates of poverty and hunger.

Its objective is to improve incomes and strengthen food and nutrition security.

Through its public sector window, GAFSP helps governments develop national agriculture and food security plans.

Its private sector window—managed by IFC and supported by the governments of Canada, Japan, the Netherlands, the United Kingdom, and the United States—provides long- and short-term loans, credit guarantees, and equity to private sector companies to improve productivity growth, deepen farmers’ links to markets, and increase capacity and technical skills.