HAPPY Program Hosts Agri-SME Finance Summit to Boost Access to Capital and Equipment in Ghana’s Agriculture Sector
TechnoServe, Mastercard Foundation, and Agri-Impact Limited convened key stakeholders in Kumasi to support youth-led agribusiness growth
KUMASI, Ghana (October 6, 2025) – Last month, TechnoServe, in partnership with the Mastercard Foundation and Agri-Impact Limited, hosted the Agri-SME & Finance Summit. Organized under the Harnessing Agricultural Productivity and Prosperity for Youth (HAPPY) program, the summit brought together more than 50 stakeholders—including 21 youth- and women-led agribusinesses supported through the HAPPY Program, financial institutions, equipment providers, and development partners—to explore how improved access to tailored financing and technology could accelerate growth in Ghana’s agriculture sector.
The event served as a business networking and deal-making platform, connecting HAPPY-supported Agri-SMEs with a range of market actors, including Fidelity Bank, Opportunity International, John Deere, Pangea Africa, and others. Attendees engaged in dialogue around improving productivity, scaling processing capacity, and reducing post-harvest losses in Ghana’s poultry, rice, soybean, and tomato value chains. “We reaffirm our commitment to supporting Agri-SMEs under the HAPPY program by strengthening market linkages and unlocking growth through strategic partnerships with key actors,” said Frank Obiora Mgbemena, Program Director of the HAPPY initiative. “The summit helped create actionable pathways for agribusinesses to access finance, equipment, and technical support—driving job creation and building a more competitive agribusiness ecosystem.”
Daniel Fahene Acquaye, CEO of Agri-Impact Limited, added: “We have demonstrated through the HAPPY Program how partnerships work, how development funding can unlock jobs, and how local firms can grow into multinationals. It is time to be bold and scale.”
The HAPPY Program is a four-year initiative supported by TechnoServe, the Mastercard Foundation, and Agri-Impact Limited, with the goal of creating 326,000 dignified job opportunities for young people across Ghana. The program focuses on four core value chains—poultry, rice, soybean, and tomato—and prioritizes support for young women and persons with disabilities.
Summit Objectives
The Agri-SME & Finance Summit aimed to:
- Enhance value addition through improved processing equipment, digital solutions, and compliance with market standards
- Increase access to finance for agribusinesses, particularly youth- and women-led enterprises, through microgrants and catalytic capital
- Promote inclusive job creation in rural, peri-urban, and urban areas through market linkages and tailored enterprise support
- Foster investment readiness among Agri-SMEs seeking to scale operations and drive value chain competitiveness
Expected Outcomes
The summit featured a keynote by Mr. Acquaye, who emphasized the need for bolder investment in agriculture, especially through scalable partnerships and modern technologies like drone marketing. A panel discussion brought together representatives from John Deere, financial institutions, and Agri-SMEs such as Akoko Solutions and Agri-Commercial Limited, highlighting shared challenges and concrete solutions.
Agri-SMEs raised concerns around the high cost of equipment, limited financing options, and competition from imports. Financial institutions responded by outlining flexible models under exploration, including tailored products for HAPPY-supported agribusinesses with sound business practices.
Attendees also participated in an exhibition showcasing agricultural equipment, financial products, and SME-led innovations. Companies such as John Deere offered zero-percent interest options for certain equipment purchases, especially for Association of Ghana Industries (AGI) members.
By the end of the summit, stakeholders agreed on the need for continued collaboration to support scalable agribusiness growth and inclusive employment.
Other voices from the summit:
“The summit gave us the confidence to approach banks and financial institutions. For the first time, we clearly understand what is required to access financing.”
— Akoko Solutions, HAPPY-supported poultry processor
“Speaking with John Deere at the event was valuable. They’ve committed to include us in their next equipment training cycle.”
— Mr. Vitalis C., General Manager, DeDon Ltd, HAPPY-supported rice processor
“At Pangea, our ambition is to bridge the financing gap by making SMEs investment-ready. This summit was a perfect opportunity to move that mission forward.”
— Ms. Georgia Offe-Gyebi, Pangea Africa Ltd
Media Contact: Linda Mensah
TechnoServe Ghana
Phone: +233-55307-5146
Email: lmensah@tns.org
About the HAPPY (Harnessing Agricultural Productivity and Prosperity for Youth) program
The HAPPY program is a four-year partnership between the MasterCard Foundation, Agri-Impact Limited, and TechnoServe, aiming to create 326,000 dignified job opportunities for Ghanaian youth. It specifically prioritizes young women and persons with disabilities across strategic agricultural sectors.
TechnoServe, working in consortium with partners, is implementing the Harnessing Agricultural Productivity and Prosperity for Youth (HAPPY) program to expand opportunities for young people across Ghana. As part of this effort, TechnoServe is supporting 21 agribusinesses and 228 microenterprises operating within four key value chains: poultry, rice, soybean, and tomato.
Through access to Catalytic Fund capital and Micro Grants, these Agri-SMEs and microenterprises receive targeted support to procure essential equipment—such as tractors and harvesters—and working capital to strengthen operations, improve processing, and access new markets.
The Catalytic Fund is designed to foster productivity, sustainability, and inclusive growth, positioning agribusinesses as engines of dignified employment for youth—particularly young women—across the HAPPY program’s priority sectors.
About TechnoServe
Founded in 1968, TechnoServe is a leader in harnessing the power of the private sector to help people lift themselves out of poverty for good. A non-profit organization working in 30 countries, we support people in low-income communities to build regenerative farms, businesses, and markets that increase incomes. Our vision is a sustainable world where all people in low-income communities have the opportunity to prosper.
In Ghana, TechnoServe has over 50 years of experience working with farmers, cooperatives, suppliers, and processors to build competitive industries around key crops such as shea, soybean, cashew, and cocoa. Our support spans transitioning farmers to commercial production, improving processor efficiency, and promoting investment in regenerative agriculture.
Some of the projects implemented over the years include the Ghana Poultry Project (funded by the USDA), Cocoa Abrabopa (funded by Wienco), and Enhancing Growth in New Enterprises (ENGINE), funded by the FCDO.
X: @TechnoServe | Facebook: @TechnoServe | LinkedIn: @TechnoServe
About Mastercard Foundation
The Mastercard Foundation works with visionary organizations to empower young people in Africa and Indigenous youth in Canada to access meaningful, dignified, and fulfilling work. The Foundation aims to enable 30 million young people across Africa to access dignified and fulfilling work by 2030, with a focus on young women, refugees and displaced persons, and people with disabilities.
http://www.mastercardfdn.org/ | LinkedIn: @Mastercard Foundation
About Agri-Impact Limited
Agri-Impact Limited is a leading agribusiness and agro-industrial advisory firm based in Ghana, dedicated to providing innovative and sustainable solutions to agricultural challenges across Sub-Saharan Africa.
X: @AgriImpactGrp | Facebook: @Agri-Impact Group | LinkedIn: @Agri-Impact Group
