AAK

Business model

AAK sources shea directly from women shea collecting communities through their Kolo Nafaso program, which focuses on poverty alleviation and women empowerment through a long-term partnership with a buying guarantee, interest-free micro credits, financial solutions, bonus payments and training. In parallel, AAK is developing an autonomous community tree nurseries business model for shea and native shade trees seedlings production, planting, and sustainable parkland management, that can be replicated in the region.

Investment need

AAK is open to new private/blended-finance investments to help scale up and replicate the project in Côte D’Ivoire and ultimately in Ghana and Burkina Faso.

Technical assistance

Technical assistance (TA) supports the commercial viability and investment readiness of the business model, to scale up the project’s reach and impact. TA will be primarily used for:

• Assessing the feasibility of the community-led tree nurseries project
• Supporting community engagement and capacity building throughout the pilot phase
• Designing a monitoring system and developing guidelines for sustainable parkland management.

The implementation of this TA is supported by PUR Projet as a project partner.

Technical assistance support from the LDN TAF does not constitute a commitment from the LDN Fund, or Mirova, to finance directly or indirectly the project described above. Any such commitment shall be subject to inter alia, a detailed technical, financial and legal due diligence of the company and the project, as well as all required LDN Fund investment committee approvals and satisfactory documentation.