Raising Rural Incomes: Propcom Mai-Karfi

TechnoServe was an implementing partner in Propcom Mai-Karfi, a six-year program working to increase the incomes of 650,000 people in northern Nigeria, half of them women.

An ambitious initiative supported by the UK Government and implemented by a consortium of organizations led by Palladium, Propcom Mai-Karfi engaged with the private and public sectors to make rural markets work for the poor.

Since the program began in 2012, TechnoServe has led the evaluation of existing and potential Propcom markets, identifying soy and grain storage as promising opportunities for new interventions. TechnoServe consultants helped two leading fertilizer companies develop improved product sizes and creative distribution and pricing strategies to reach smallholder farmers.

TechnoServe also took the lead on implementing the Tractor Support Program, engaging financial institutions to provide loans to purchase tractors, strengthening the Tractor Owners and Operators Association of Nigeria, and working with tractor manufacturers and suppliers to meet farmers’ needs for equipment and maintenance.