In Episode 151 of the Disruptors for Good podcast, Causeartist contributor, Rafael Aldon, speaks with Fahad Ifaz, Co-founder and CEO of iFarmer, on his mission to democratize agricultural finance and supply chains to millions of small-scale farmers.
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Fahad is an entrepreneur with a vision to create innovative, sustainable and resilient solutions for people in emerging economies.
A big believer of businesses and entrepreneurs as driving force for human development.
Fahad believes as rationale human beings we don’t buy or invest in “things”.
We don’t make decisions based on features and benefits, we make decisions based on emotion, intuition and a range of other calculations which are complex in nature similar to the markets which we thrive in.
This is true for the poor farmers, producers, big corporations, governments and financial institutions.
Prior to founding iFarmer, Fahad worked for 10 years in the “market systems development” and ” and Private sector development space with experience in agriculture, micro-enterprise development, value chain development, policy analysis and private sector engagement across various countries in South Asia.
These experienced included working for the NGO, Swisscontact-Katalyst, The World Bank, CARE Australia and SPRING Accelerator.
Fahad has a BBA from NSU (2006-2010) and a Masters in Economics from NSU (2012-2013).
About iFarmer
iFarmer can connect farmers, space/landowners, investors, and crop buyers to create a complete farming supply chain.
To date, the app and platform is used by 71,000+ farmers in Bangladesh and growing rapidly month over month.
Bangladesh alone has 20 million small-scale farmers!
The company has developed an innovative online platform that enables anyone in Bangladesh to easily sponsor in farming and livestock. Being a part of the iFarmer community is more than earning returns.
Food, Energy, and Water are peoples primary needs, that’s always decreasing.
By 2050 world Population will reach 9.1 billion and 70% of world population will be living in urban space.
In Bangladesh, there is an urban population of 30%, which is likely to increase up to 50% by 2030.
The question is who will feed this growing population? That’s why we need new ways to create scalable and efficient agriculture farming.
How does iFarmer App Work?
Farmer – The app bundles everything a farmer needs to maximize profit: financing, farm inputs and advisory, insurance, and access to market.
Funders – They use technology and data to enable institutions and individuals to support in creating access to finance for the farmers.
Agriculture Companies – They work with agricultural input companies and service providers, offering quality agriculture input and advisory services to the farmers
Buyers – They source directly from the farmers and supply agriculture produce in bulk quantity to large enterprises, modern trade retailers and wholesale markets.
