Posted on June, 20, 2024 at 08:48 am
A Rwandan startup, Shambapro, has won a prestigious global challenge award for being a top innovator with a positive impact solution addressing the future of food and agriculture.
Shambapro’s innovative app has been recognized for its transformative potential in the agricultural sector.
Shambapro emerged winner in a pitch competition against other finalists from Switzerland, USA and Italy on 15th June 2024 at the We Make Future International Trade Fair and Festival on Innovation, in Bologna, Italy.
“This award is a recognition of our vision to help small farm businesses thrive and gives us additional fuel to innovate and bring better and easy to use solutions that will improve the agribusiness sector and help transform our agri-food system” said Shambapro’s founder, Kelvin Odoobo.
The founder, who is an experienced practitioner in East Africa’s agribusiness industry, started Shambapro because of the many frustrations that small farm business owners in Africa face due to lack of suitable finance, poor access to affordable quality inputs and services as well as good markets.
The Shambapro App offers numerous benefits to farmers, making it a valuable tool for modern agriculture.
Shambapro’s innovative approach to agriculture has garnered international recognition, highlighting the startup’s potential to revolutionize farming practices.
By leveraging technology to address key challenges in the agricultural sector, Shambapro is paving the way for more sustainable and efficient farming in Rwanda and beyond.
Apart from helping farm businesses to be more profitable and sustainable, Odoobo wants to help catalyze mindset change from the traditional view that agriculture is a main stay of poor rural illiterate people.
“Agribusiness is a reliable source of income, a generator of good jobs and an honorable profession that can create cross generational wealth, something that educated people should seriously consider as an option.”
“Young Africans need to be more aware of the many great opportunities in the agribusiness and the food system in general and be conscious that agribusiness is actually a real business, with many opportunities and risks and one that anyone can take advantage off.”
Shambapro app can be used for free by farm owners across Africa to manage one farm enterprise, receive accurate weather forecast and generate business reports.
Its paid version which will allow farm owners to manage more than one farm enterprise, together with up to 10 collaborators like farm managers, workers and experts, will be available to users July 2024.
This version will also give farm owners access to accredited buyers of farm produce as well as suppliers of farm inputs and services.
Here are some key benefits of the app;Efficient farm record-keeping is crucial for successful farming, but doing it manually can be time-consuming and challenging.
The Shambapro App assists farmers in tracking everything from input costs, harvest dates, land and input use, daily worker tasks, and produce sales. This comprehensive tracking system makes it easier for farmers to stay organized, comply with regulations, and manage their farm businesses effectively.
The Shambapro App helps farmers streamline their operations by automating routine tasks and tracking important data such as disease and pest outbreaks, pest control measures, animal treatment plans, milking and fertilizing history, and breeding records.
By providing detailed insights and data, the app enables farmers to make informed decisions, optimize their resources, and enhance productivity and profitability.
Shambapro facilitates open and verifiable communication between farm owners, workers, experts, observers, and investors, as accredited by the farm owners.
This feature promotes effective collaboration in solving problems and strengthens relationships and accountability within the farm team.
Improved communication helps ensure that all stakeholders are on the same page, leading to better farm management and outcomes.
The app allows farmers to track and report on their activities and results, providing greater transparency to buyers, investors, financial providers, and regulators.
This transparency helps farmers build trust and credibility, improving their access to financing and other essential resources.
By demonstrating their commitment to transparency and accountability, farmers can attract more support and investment.
Source: Taarifa