Maharashtra Agribusiness Network Project
The Maharashtra Agribusiness Network Project supports the Farmer Producer Organisations (FPO). It helps to improve a network of post-harvest marketing chains. Also, it supports the FPOs that focus on horticultural crops.
About the project
The project supports the horticultural and agricultural business and value chains of more than 200,000 farmers. It helps to minimise food losses. The project connects efficient agri businesses through the FPOs. Also, the project connects the post harvest systems to distribute the produce. The project also provides credit and financial services, relevant knowledge and technology, market information and risk management tools and other essential agribusiness services. The project aligns with the Maharashtra Government’s Vision 2030.
Benefits of the project
The Maharashtra Agribusiness Network Project mainly benefits the marginal farmers (those farmers holding less than 2 hectares of land), agri business industries and the rural population. Eventually it will help the reduce the rural-urban divide in the state. It will help to address the following issues in the state:
- High levels of indebtedness
- Underemployment
- Lack of access to health, education
- Discrimination and marginalisation
- Imperfect markets that lead to smaller value realizations
- Absence of access to credit markets
- Poor human resource base
- Imperfect markets that lead to improper investment decisions
- Smaller access to services. This restricts the decisions related to technological know-how and cultivation practices.
- Poor access to electricity grids and public irrigation
The project aims to reduce the overall poverty. It will help the poor by providing an efficient post-harvest market chain. The project mainly targets the vulnerable groups, women and the scheduled castes. The project mainly helps to improve the marketing capacity, post-harvest capacities, increase farmer income and reduce food losses.
Stakeholders of the project
The main stakeholders involved in the project are rural men, farmers, local authorities, civil society, women, government bodies and the value chain operators.
Assistance from Asian Development Bank
In October 2021, the Asian Development Bank provided a loan of 100 million USD to the project. The loan will mainly help the FPOs and value chain operators. It is to support 300 sub projects. The loan is to be used to upgrade 16 existing post-harvest facilities. Also, it is to be used to construct three new post-harvest facilities.
