WE INVEST IN THE POOR

Building a strong agricultural sector is a cornerstone of PHI's poverty alleviation program. The agricultural policies and practices manifested over the past fifty years have led to severe land degradation worldwide due to inputs of harmful chemicals, intensive agriculture, and un-regenerative nutrient extraction. As a result, rural communities have witnessed increased social inequity, abandonment of family farms in favor of urbanization, and overall reduction of food and nutrition security. 

PHI is engaged in agro-ecological approaches to capacity building and knowledge sharing with local farmer cooperatives and extensionists. Our comprehensive five-year strategic plan for food sovereignty in sub-Saharan Africa involves connecting various actors and stakeholders in the industry on a single dynamic platform including academia, financial investors, market aggregators, non-governmental organizations, corporations, public policy influencers, local government agencies, and farmer cooperatives in full consideration of their unique character, needs, and operational structures in pursuit of win-win alliances. The network provides support systems for healthy business partnerships, financing, appropriate technologies and infrastructure in support of crop storage, value-add, transformation, last-mile connections, and marketplace needs.  November 2021 will feature the inaugural Chakula Bora Awards for schools, young agripreneurs, and small and medium business enterprises based on triple bottom line metrics. 

 

The Chakula Bora Award, “Healthy Food” in Swahili, represents a social impact initiative aimed at promoting the values and socio- economic benefits of regenerative agriculture in sub-Saharan Africa. The awards are intended to showcase innovations in sustainable and scalable agriculture and best practices along a variety of agribusiness lines: (1) forestry, (2) crop enterprises, (3) livestock, (4) aquaculture, (5) fisheries, and (6) apiculture. Innnovations are encouraged throughout the value chain from production and harvest to transformation and market access.