Accessing capital remains a challenge but a large deal for a local biotech firm last year points to the sector's potential, according to Israeli agtech incubator Trendlines.
The West African forestry investment company recently secured $10m from a Nordic DFI to help further fund its operations.
Phoenix Africa Development's 'Lion Mountains' project is raising $1.5m to start farming a small plot of land, a pilot phase it hopes will help raise further funding for the $22m project.
CoBank, a national cooperative bank, has anchored the public-private fund with a $10bn commitment to be used in loans. The fund hopes to attract additional private capital from institutional investors.
Ascent Africa has raised $50m towards the $70m target of its debut 'Rift Valley' fund, which will invest a large portion of its capital in agri-related processing companies.
The Mexican government is anchoring its third Agribusiness Capital Fund, targeting $100m. It hopes to launch a separate fund to attract foreign private equity funds at a later date.
The creation of a Rs 100 crore ($16.6m; €12m) agtech investment fund does not go far enough to support the sector but alongside other agri initiatives is a step in the right direction, according to private equity professionals.
The Canadian retail fund house is raising another fund and expects to see demand from institutional investors alongside its usual retail clients.
Newly launched Agri Partners is offering debt exposure to UK farmland through private funding syndicates. It has completed its first two deals.
The Eastern Europe-focused fund management firm will not charge a management fee until assets under management reach $5m. The performance fee has also been reduced.