Agro Initiative Zimbabwe

Agro Initiative Zimbabwe (AIZ) is a programme implemented by TechnoServe Zimbabwe, aimed at supporting promising ideas in agriculture by awarding up to $50,000 in seed capital prizes and tailored technical assistance to small- and medium-sized businesses that demonstrate inclusion of smallholder farmers in their supply chains and can serve as models for the broader industry. To date, 39 businesses (25 under Incubation and 14 under Ideation) in diverse categories including staple crops, horticulture, livestock, food processing, mobile agriculture, essential oils, aquaculture, apiculture, financial services and dairy have been signed up in 2 to 3 years contractual agreements.

Instrumental to the organisations initiatives is technical assistance; this element addresses client constraints in areas such as evaluation, development and implementation of risk mitigation strategies, market linkages, corporate strategy formulation and implementation, standards, systems and procedures essential for raising capital. Technical assistance grants are utilized through the provision of TechnoServe expertise, local and international consultants, training at business and farmer level, workshops, exchange visits and seminars.