Financial opportunities for agriculture: FAO Training Sessions in Benin

As part of its support to PADAAM, FAO is working to support financial institutions in Benin to increase their agricultural portfolios, targeting specifically financial products for small actors operating in the cassava, maize and rice value chains.

To this end, FAO organized capacity building activities for financial institutions to provide them with tools to formulate strategies for designing and offering targeted financial products for agriculture.

Under the umbrella of the longstanding partnership between ADA (Appui au Développement Autonome) and FAO, with the support of the Luxembourg Ministry of Foreign and European Affairs (MAEE), FAO organized the Agricultural and Rural Finance Training (FAR) from October 17 to 22, 2022 and the Agricultural and Rural Finance Training FAR-PADAAM from October 24 to 28, 2022. 

The latter was dedicated solely to beneficiaries from the PADAAM project, including microfinance institutions and local authorities supported by the project. Specifically, 30 participants from microfinance institutions (MFIs) and local authorities (ATDAs) supported by PADAAM, deepened the themes of agricultural insurance, risk management and financing opportunities in Benin. In addition, a field visit was organized for the participants to visit a local rice producer supported by PADAAM in the area of Grand-Popo that is producing bio products. 

These activities contribute to the implementation of FAO´s project supporting PADAAM in its effort to strengthen the capacities of banks, microfinance institutions and investors in Benin to effectively finance business plans for agricultural initiatives developed using the Rural Invest tool of FAO.