The objective of the GIZ project “Promotion of Sustainable Agriculture and Rural Development in Tunisia (PAD II)” is to increase the sustainability in Tunisian agriculture and thereby stimulate the local economy. PAD II has a particular focus on increasing income prospects for the populations of the Northwestern and Central Eastern regions of Tunisia, with a focus on youth and women. The goal of the approach is to support access to finance for agricultural co-operatives and young people by:

• increasing the capacity of these target groups to formulate and present their business ideas to potential providers of finance;
• increasing the ability of target groups to negotiate with providers of finance;
• making providers of finance more aware of the potential of the agricultural sector; and
• working with providers of finance to adapt processes and products to meet the needs of the target group.

IPC’s experts implemented the following tasks on behalf of GIZ:

• liaising with counterparts at GIZ on all project-related activities
• reviewing success stories and examples from other countries with regard to suitable financial products and compiling short catalogue of international best practices
• supporting the preparation, implementation and evaluation of a “pitch” event where agripreneurs present their projects
• conducting a financial ecosystem mapping and a preliminary selection of specific institutions and channels
• analysing financing and TA needs as well as business models of targeted agripreneurs and co-operative projects
• presenting the programme to selected financial service providers and discussing obstacles to access to finance
• developing tools and conducting trainings for the mentors of the selected agripreneurs
• accompanying the mentors in their work with the agripreneurs
• conducting a workshop to raise awareness for the potential and financing needs of the agricultural sector