Agtuall, Syngenta Foundation, The Lightsmith Group and the Adaptation SME Accelerator Program publish a case study upon the completion of a successful collaboration to develop and deploy a climate resilient platform for over twenty thousand smallholder farmers in Madhya Pradesh, India.

June 20, 2023 – Madhya Pradesh, India:  Agtuall, Syngenta Foundation India, The Lightsmith Group, and the Adaptation SME Accelerator Program (ASAP) announced today the publication of a Case Study – “Developing a digital platform for smallholder farmers in Madhya Pradesh, India to improve crop monitoring, program metrics, and climate risk assessment.” The Case Study is published at the completion of a collaboration between the partners to develop and deploy a software platform that empowers smallholder farmers and enables the delivery of climate impact financial products to previously under-served communities.

Over the last 6 months, Agtuall has developed and implemented a digital platform that supports the delivery of climate-resilient technologies, knowledge dissemination and risk assessment for smallholder farmers and financial institutions.  The platform developed incorporates a workflow that automatically checks and corrects geo-locations, increasing data reliability. It provides insights using aggregated data at the village and district level, allowing for data-oriented decision-making regarding program intervention areas, services to launch, and onboarding of new farmers to the platform. Moreover, the platform serves as a monitoring and reporting mechanism for donors and partners. Finally, the platform addresses the challenge of quantifying climate risk for designing financial products by combining historical climate datasets and current data to create risk profiles at a sub-district level. During the 6-month activity period, the platform onboarded 20,149 farmers, including 7,774 women farmers across 1,656 villages representing 54,912 acres of farmland.

Read more about the project in the Case Study

“By making data and analytics available to small-holder farmers, Agtuall is building climate resilience and enhancing the ability for farmers in India to understand & respond to the local impacts of climate change. This understanding can then allow financial institutions to better assess climate risks and provide financial products to previously under-served communities.” – Brian Parham, Program Director of ASAP

“A detailed monitoring, reporting, and verification tool developed by Agtuall is helping tracking and monitoring of the farmers field which further helps understanding the crop dynamics as well as geographical representation of the farmers. Further, the tool helps in visualizing the farmers source of irrigation, crops being grown, cropping pattern in different season. The given analysis is being considered by the farmers to avail the weather information, credit resources for their farms.” – Rahul Tidake, Head Strategy & New Initiatives, Syngenta Foundation India

“This Technical Assistance Facility enabled us to create a platform that supports a consortium of partners to address some of the key challenges when it comes to climate adaptation for smallholders. The new functionalities on the platform enable us to explore new use cases and expand geographically. WE are grateful to both ASAP and Syngenta Foundation for partner with us on this journey. This is just the beginning!” – Vikram Sarbajna, CEO of Agtuall

The success of this program has been a catalyst for the deployment of this technology, with future plans being made to expand domestically within multiple states in India and internationally in the coming year. For inquiries on the project and collaboration opportunities contact Agtuall at info@agtuall.com.

The initiative was funded by the Syngenta Foundation and a Technical Assistance Facility awarded to Agtuall through the Adaptation SME Accelerator Program, supported by the Global Environment Facility and Conservation International, and built upon an existing collaboration of Agtuall and Syngenta Foundation India’s Agri-Entrepreneur Growth Fund.

About the Partners:

Agtuall
Agtuall focuses on creating digital platforms that enable the design and delivery of risk transfer instruments (e.g. parametric insurance products) for smallholder farmers worldwide. The platform leverages data analytics to empower farmers and stakeholders, enabling sustainable farming practices and resilient agricultural systems. For more information visit www.agtuall.com.

Syngenta Foundation India

Syngenta Foundation India is a non-profit organization focusing on sustainable agriculture in India. They work to enhance smallholder farmers’ livelihoods and food security. The initiatives include promoting sustainable farming practices, empowering farmers, and establishing market linkages. The foundation collaborates with various stakeholders and emphasizes the adoption of innovative agricultural technologies. Their goal is to contribute to the long-term development of Indian agriculture and rural community through last mile delivery agents called Agri Entrepreneurs. For more information visit www.syngentafoundation.org.

The Adaptation SME Accelerator Program (ASAP) and The Lightsmith Group
ASAP is a program dedicated to assisting small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) in adapting to climate change impacts. It offers tailored support and resources to vulnerable SMEs in developing countries. ASAP focuses on capacity building, mentorship, and access to financing, helping SMEs identify climate risks and implement resilience strategies. The project aims to integrate climate resilience into SMEs’ business models and foster sustainable practices. Through its targeted efforts, ASAP contributes to enhancing the adaptive capacity of SMEs in the face of climate challenges. ASAP is led by the Lightsmith Group with funding from the Global Environment Facility’s Special Climate Change Fund and the Inter-America Development Bank. ASAP is facilitated by Conservation International. For more information on ASAP, visit www.climateasap.org and about The Lightsmith Group visit www.lightsmithgp.com.

Conservation International
Conservation International protects nature for the benefit of humanity. Through science, policy, fieldwork and finance, we spotlight and secure the most important places in nature for the climate, for biodiversity and for people. With offices in 30 countries and projects in more than 100 countries, Conservation International partners with governments, companies, civil society, Indigenous peoples and local communities to help people and nature thrive together. Go to Conservation.org for more, and follow our work on Conservation News, Facebook, Twitter, TikTok, Instagram and YouTube.

The Global Environment Facility (GEF)
The GEF is a family of funds dedicated to confronting biodiversity loss, climate change, pollution, and strains on land and ocean health. Its grants, blended financing, and policy support helps developing countries address their biggest environmental priorities and adhere to international environmental conventions. Over the past three decades, the GEF has provided more than $22 billion and mobilized $120 billion in co-financing  for more than 5,000 national and regional projects. For more information visit www.thegef.org.