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Agricultural Value Chain Finance Innovations and Lessons: Case Studies in Africa documents key aspects and lessons from selected best practice cases for training and learning. Using site visits to document the information, the 22 practical case studies and examples were developed across Africa to portray a diverse set of experiences that address different aspects of applying agricultural financing using a value chain approach. The cases are of varied length and complexity. Eighteen short case studies for use in time-constrained workshop settings are presented and together with four longer, highlight cases, which deal with more complex arrangements and business models. The longer ones are best for self-learning and for university and trainings when there is sufficient time for deeper analysis.

The best practice cases presented represent a) diverse business models, b) risk mitigation tools and approaches for value chains and their financing, c) investment fund applications, d) digital applications, e) women’s value chain financing and f) policy issues along with three user-case scenarios. The document is organized with an introduction of the cases, a synthesis of the learning, presentation of each of the cases and summary tables for comparisons among them. Training facilitators can use the document as a whole or selectively use cases to fit their specific training needs. The document is meant to be a living document, with updates of cases and the expansion of the models and tools to fit the context of their application in diverse value chain and country settings.