On 23 December 2019, His Excellency, Mr. Jacek Jankowski, Ambassador of the European Union (EU) to Zambia, co-signed with implementing partners an agreement worth EUR 26 million (approximately ZMK 400 million) to support the commercialization of smallholder farmers in Zambia.

The "Economic, Nutrition and Technical support for increased Economic Returns and PRofit In SustainablE agribusiness in Zambia – ENTERPRISE Zambia" project is funded through the 11^th European Development Fund. It will be implemented by Gorta-Self Help Africa (GSHA), an Ireland based non-governmental organization, and by Imani Enterprise Limited (IEL), a United Kingdom based private company, which jointly serve as Agribusiness Support Operators (ABSO).

The ABSO will contribute to promoting the development of market-led, inclusive, and private sector driven value chains and support entrepreneurial smallholder farmers to develop their businesses, by linking them to private sector enterprises and service providers.

As such, ENTERRRISE Zambia aims at better market-integration of smallholder farmers and agribusiness actors in value chains at national, regional and international level. Special emphasis will be given to the diversification of the economy, the generation of employment opportunities for women and youth and, in view of recurrent droughts, on nutritionally sensitive agricultural value chains and climate-smart agriculture.

To achieve its objective, ENTERPRISE Zambia will establish and manage, on behalf of the European Union, a grant scheme of EUR 20 million, providing incentives to the development of the smallholder agricultural sector in Zambia. A proportion of EUR 6 million will be dedicated to investments in the aquaculture sector. Apart from the grant financing, ENTERPRISE Zambia will also provide technical advisory services for agri-businesses in implementing their business plans and strengthen Farmer/Aquaculture Associations, towards better commercialization and market-orientation. Last but not least, ENTERPRISE Zambia will contribute to increasing the access of actors in the agriculture/aquaculture sector to better finance (credits, banks) and financial services to stimulate further investments in rural areas.

Ambassador Jankowski said "Through this new innovative project, the European Union leads the way to increasingly engage and intensify cooperation with the private sector. This will be indispensable to diversify the country's economy and to lift the rural population out of poverty. Our initiative aims at contributing to economically viable, environmentally sound and socially inclusive development in Zambia and to create more decent and better paid jobs, particularly for rural women and youth."

ENTERPRISE Zambia is part of a larger EUR 99 million programme to promote the commercialization of smallholder farmers in Zambia. Its design draws from experience of similar European Union funded projects in Kenya and Malawi. The European Union will continue to work with all the stakeholders to boost agricultural transformation in the country, which will be a success story for the benefit of the people of Zambia.