By Nita Karume:
Kenya and Nigeria are currently sharing the limelight of the top agri-tech markets in Africa. This is according to a released report by Disrupt Africa. The report goes on to state that currently the two countries jointly account for over 60 per cent of agri-tech startups in Africa.
In the research, Kenya stands out as the leading market in the general African agri-tech sector. This would later pick interest in West Africa over the past two years. As a result, the region presently dominates the market. This is in addition to being home to two of the top three agri-tech ecosystems on the continent.
Furthermore, the number of startups operating in the market has grown by 110 per cent over the past two years. Meanwhile, approximately US $19m has been poured into invested into the sector over the same period.
In the Agrinnovating for Africa: Exploring the African Agri-Tech Startup Ecosystem Report 2018, there has been a record of 82 agri-tech startups in operation across Africa. This is by the start of this year. Moreover, 52 percent of these were launched in the past two years.
Annual startup activity in the agri-tech space has been tracked as far back as early as 2010. However, the same remained limited until the end of 2015. According to the report, the current boom began two year back. Subsequently, 43 new ventures have been launched across Africa.
According to co-founder Disrupt Africa Gabriella Mulligan, the agri-tech market could very well be that opportunity that will lead a great revolution in Africa as far as value and economy is concerned. Furthermore, the role of as entrepreneurs and investors in the coming up with solutions to challenges facing farmers will in turn create opportunities for market expansion.
