EDFI AgriFI and Seedstars Africa Ventures have invested a total of $3.7 million in Kenya-based agritech startup Shamba Pride, the companies announced Monday.
The strategic pre-series A funding includes a $2 million long-term loan from EDFI AgriFI, the EU Agriculture Financing Initiative, and an additional $1.7 million in equity from Seedstars Africa Ventures. The investments aim to help Shamba Pride expand its operations providing agricultural inputs and services to smallholder farmers in rural Kenya.
“Support for Shamba Pride reflects our commitment to empowering entrepreneurship in frontier markets, with a high impact felt in rural areas,” said Rodrigo Madrazo, CEO of EDFI Management Company.
Shamba Pride runs an online-to-offline marketplace platform connecting smallholder farmers to agricultural inputs and information through a network of village-level agrodealer shops, known as agrovets. The startup’s model allows agrovets to more easily purchase supplies wholesale and have them delivered.
“Shamba Pride’s success is based on innovations which facilitate the day-to-day farming activities,” said Maxime Bouan, general partner at Seedstars Africa Ventures.
The new financing will help Shamba Pride grow its franchise network from 220 to more agrovets and offer farmers more affordable prices on supplies, according to founder and CEO Samuel Munguti.
“The company has already grown its outreach by 10x since 2021,” Munguti said. “The additional equity investment alongside a trusted institutional financial institution is a significant milestone for the company to become a regional champion.”
Robin Boereboom, senior investment officer at EDFI Management Company, said the startup is “revolutionizing the agri input ecosystem in rural areas, with significant benefits for both agrovets and farmers.”
Yvonne Chileshe, an expert on agriculture value chains with the Organization of African, Caribbean and Pacific States, said the investment exemplifies the need for financial support to advance sustainable agriculture in developing countries.
Shamba Pride aims to reach 200,000 smallholder farmers by the end of 2025.
