UGANDA – Yield Uganda Investment Fund, an agribusiness impact vehicle managed by Pearl Capital Partners, has invested US$515,000 in Enimiro, a Ugandan farming platform that connects small-scale farmers to markets.

Incorporated in 2019, the company is a vertical supply chain management business connecting the small holder farmers to the international buying community for three organic products; vanilla, arabica coffee and dried pineapple, with vanilla as the anchor product.

The business uses the latest product traceability systems to ensure constant support to its wide out-growers network of farmers while also providing an effective supply chain to the international customer base.

David Wright, the CEO of Enimiro said that, “YieldFund and Pearl Capital Partners are the right partners for Enimiro based on their local knowledge and support structures.

“With the support from IFAD and the Europen Union, it is allowing Enimiro access to a vast resource of knowledge and expertise to ensure we can meet best practices in Smallholder farmer engagement.

“We are very excited about the partnership to continue our objective of developing farmer-to-consumer supply chains with leading technology and value addition infrastructure.”

The Yield Fund is an agri-business impact fund set up by the European Union (EU), through the International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD), the National Social Security Fund (NSSF), the Open Society Foundation (OSF) and FCA Investments.

The investment, comprising of a blend of equity and Cumulative Redeemable Preference Shares, will enable Enimiro meet the demands of its existing and prospective customers by improving efficiencies, processing more volume, and improving product quality for both Vanilla and Arabica coffee.

These will be achieved through the development of the company’s newly acquired coffee processing site and aid in the procurement and installation of processing and drying equipment for the Arabica coffee.

In addition, Enimiri will undertake construction of a new vanilla processing facility warehouse, procurement, and installation of a new vanilla quick curing equipment.

The vanilla processing facility will be designed to international food processing standards and have a quality testing laboratory and extensive security provisions.

These interventions will significantly increase processing capacity, which will be able to meet the new customer interest and increased demand.

Further to that, Enimiro will integrate more than 2000 smallholder in its supply chain, ensuring a better and more stable income to them, hence alleviating poverty and improving living standards.

Dr.Edward Isingoma Matsiko, Managing Partner-Pearl Capital Partners said, “We are cognisant of the cumbersome environment and dysfunctional limitations which are traditionally associated with the classical Ugandan organic products supply chains.

“We are confident that with our investment in Enimiro and the company’s ability to unlock potential of the Ugandan small holder farmers by providing the much needed and desired traceability system with international buyers, will be enhanced hence increased premiums for the farmers produce and revival of farmer management systems that can be replicated in Uganda.”

The backing marks the Fund’s twelfth investment into the Ugandan agriculture SME sector. Some of the organization’s Yield Fund has supported in the recent past include poultry farm Sekajja Agro Farms, AMFRI organic farm, certified seed processor NASECO, and Pura Organic Agro Tech, an agro-processing company focused on the cassava value chain.

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