Oyster Agribusiness, a forward-thinking agricultural technology (AgriTech) company that works closely with smallholder farmers, is overjoyed to report that it has been successful in acquiring large funding to pursue its objective of sustainable agriculture, gender equality, and talent management.
The recent acquisition of a total of $310,000 in grants and a line of credit for funding by the company represents a key milestone on its road towards bringing about positive change in the agriculture industry.
A significant line of credit in the amount of $300,000 was made available to Oyster Agribusiness by Root Capital, a reputable nonprofit lender committed to fostering resiliency and prosperity in rural communities.
This influx of financial resources will play a critical part in growing our operations and providing help to a greater number of disadvantaged smallholder farmers. We already work with 3,000 smallholder farmers, but with the help of this injection of finance, we hope to be able to empower many more of these farmers.
Our objective is to increase their productivity and improve their standard of living by providing them with a variety of resources, including environmentally friendly fertilisers and compost, advanced seed varieties, and skilled agronomic practises.
Read also: dfcu Bank, Mastercard, Rabo to digitize agriculture in Uganda
Remarks from Oyster’s CEO
Edmond Kombat, Founder and CEO of Oyster Agribusiness, who is the visionary guiding the company remarked: “We express our deep gratitude to Root Capital, our collaborative partners, and the grant providers for acknowledging the worth of our endeavors and the potential of smallholder farmers.”
“This funding will enable us to broaden our outreach, strengthen our gender inclusivity initiatives, and invest in our exceptional team, propelling us closer to our vision of a flourishing, sustainable agricultural sector.”
Mr. Kombat added that Oyster Agribusiness makes use of many technologies, including sensors for temperature and moisture, aerial photographs, technology based on GPS coordinates, automation, information monitoring, and data collection and analysis.
This all-encompassing technological integration not only increases efficiency in our smallholder farms, but it also boosts yields, reduces costs, and strengthens sustainability, so turning our strategy into one that is ecologically conscious.
These agricultural practises that are sensitive to climate change contribute to improved forecasting and decision-making processes, which ensures the effective distribution of farm inputs to our farmers and the transfer of farm produce from our farmers to our off-takers.
In addition, Oyster Agribusiness has been presented with not one but two significant funds, namely a Gender Inclusion Grant and a Talent Management Grant, in order to support essential aspects of the social impact initiatives that we have been working on.
The former will be allocated to support initiatives that encourage gender equality and the empowerment of women in the agricultural landscape. Oyster Agribusiness is firmly of the opinion that fostering an inclusive environment for people of all genders is essential to the long-term prosperity of farming communities.
“Through this grant, we will introduce targeted programmes aimed at granting women farmers’ enhanced access to resources, training, and decision-making roles, thereby reinforcing their contributions to the sector,” Kombat added.
The impacts
The achievements of Oyster Agribusiness are built on a solid foundation of human capital, and the purpose of this award is to foster the development of our highly skilled pool of specialists. He said that through investing in the development of people, we hope to establish a culture of creativity, quality, and empathy, which will enable us to better cater to the needs of farmers and promote enduring good change.
Oyster Agribusiness is completely persuaded that environmentally friendly farming practises and morally upstanding methods of conducting business have the capability of igniting a social and economic revolution. With the constant support of its partners and stakeholders, as well as the dedication of our dynamic team, we are convinced that these newly acquired funds will speed our efforts to construct an agricultural ecosystem that is more egalitarian, resilient, and prosperous.
