This Week, on African Farms

Saffricon, South Africa's pioneer large-scale saffron producer, reports that growing conditions in the Western Cape are proving highly suitable for the spice crop. Saffron requires relatively little water compared to traditional crops, though harvesting remains labor-intensive as flowers must be hand-picked within 24 hours.

Zimbabwe is expanding its national livestock genetic improvement program to build a climate-resilient cattle herd of six million by 2030. However, illegal gold mining poses a growing risk to farms, with nearly 200 pedigree cattle recently killed after falling into mining pits or drinking water contaminated with cyanide.

Nigeria’s Tomato and Orchard Producers Association is calling for stronger government involvement in food storage, production planning, and market management to help stabilize tomato prices. They are urging authorities to establish an off-take program to buy excess produce during peak harvests, store it, and release it during shortages.

Somalia’s Prime Minister officially launched the National Agriculture and Food Systems Investment Forum in Mogadishu. Under the country's National Transformation Plan, the government is executing a pivot away from emergency humanitarian reliance toward building long-term, self-sufficient domestic food production.

The Nigerian government announced plans to double the contribution of the country's livestock industry from its current estimated value of $32 billion to over $64 billion annually.

Turkish industrial engineering firm Alapala has completed a new wheat milling complex for Moulin Sako in Côte d’Ivoire. The facility includes a flour mill capable of processing 250 tons of wheat per day, alongside six storage silos with a combined capacity of 15,000 tons to serve growing local and regional demand for wheat products.

Agribusiness firm Cardinal Torch Company Limited is investing $4.5 million to construct a cashew processing factory in Sagamu, Ogun State, Nigeria. The facility will have an initial processing capacity of 10 tonnes per day.

Communal livestock farmers in South Africa received $148,400 in carbon revenue through the Grassland Restoration and Stewardship in South Africa (GRASS) project.

Tech Safari and Kora are hosting a free webinar on what stablecoins unlock for African trade. Kora CEO Dickson Nsofor, Timon CEO Tomi Ayorinde, and Blockwisely co-founder Yvonne Kagondu will discuss why moving money between two African countries still costs so much, and what changes when the dollar leg comes out. It holds on Thursday, August 20 at 10 AM WAT. Register here.

Our friends at Spindle are hosting a webinar on Rethinking Digital Advisory for Smallholder Farmers. If you're an agritech founder, MFI, NGO, or donor building digital advisory tools for farmers, you should check it out. It holds on September 3 at 4PM EAT. Register here.

The World Bank GAFSP Grants has launched a new $163 million grant program. The funding is available to support climate-smart agriculture, food security, and smallholder innovation in vulnerable and low-income countries. The window closes on September 15.

The 2026 ECOWAS Startup Awards are accepting applications from West African founders supporting digital transformation and value-chain development. The competition will award a total of $65,000 in cash prizes, including $30,000 for the overall winner, $20,000 for first runner-up, and $15,000 for second runner-up.

The Innovate Africa Challenge is open for applications from founders building AI-powered agricultural tools. The challenge offers a $50,000 grant for scalable solutions in crop forecasting, pest detection, water optimization, and climate resilience. The application deadline is August 31, 2026.

The Africa Agriculture and Trade Investment Fund (AATIF) is accepting funding applications from agribusinesses, cooperatives, and financial institutions. AATIF provides tailored debt and equity financing for projects that improve food security and strengthen agricultural value chains in Africa.