Promoting economic development that benefits the poor through support to key sectors and markets in east africa

Sector Development

Agricultural Finance

Local Institution Building

Featured projects

Tanzanian Cotton & Textiles Sector

cotton plant

We are working with local institutions to transform Tanzania’s cotton and textiles sector by raising the yields of more than 400,000 smallholders and catalysing downstream industries through a range of activities aimed at the sector’s key constraints.

Venture Capital for African Agriculture

We have supported two innovative private equity funds which aim for social impact and financial returns by investing in agricultural SMEs in East Africa whose growth can catalyse the value chains they operate in, benefitting large numbers of smallholders.

Tanzanian Tea Sector

tanzanian tea leaves

We are building the Tanzanian tea sector in partnership with the Wood Family Trust, government bodies and the private sector. The Chai Project aims to expand tea cultivation, increase productivity, improve quality and boost returns to smallholders.

Agricultural Financial Markets Scoping

tractor

We have developed and piloted a research tool mapping the supply and demand of agricultural finance at a national level to provide credible, detailed information that should increase the quantity and effectiveness of investment in African agriculture.

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Featured case studies

Tanzania Cotton Programme: Summary (2011)

We have been working with local institutions to develop Tanzania’s cotton and textiles sector since 2007. This two page summary focuses on the programme’s promotion of a contract farming model. It outlines progress to date and the challenges ahead.

African Agricultural Capital: Summary (2011)

This two page summary profiles African Agricultural Capital – an innovative private equity fund capitalised by Gatsby and partners in 2004 to invest in agricultural small and medium-sized enterprises in East Africa.

  • Tanzanian Cotton

    Video - The Benefits of Contract Farming

    We are promoting a contract farming model in the Tanzanian cotton sector to ensure farmers can access the inputs they need to raise yields. Click the title to watch a video broadcast on a variety of channels across Tanzania in both English and Swahili to inform farmers of the benefits of the model and encourage their participation.