Over 70 percent of the world’s poor rely on agriculture and live in rural areas where poor infrastructure and other market inefficiencies prevent them from accessing essential business services. Limited access often means these smallholder farmers miss out on innovations that could improve productivity and strengthen their resilience. The Village Agent Approach is designed to provide improved market linkages from smallholder farmers, including those from marginalized groups, to suppliers and buyers.
A village agent approach seeks to enable a transition of entrepreneurial community members, specifically those working in agriculture, to become providers of fee-based market linkage services. This manual outlines the process and factors to consider in developing this approach during programme implementation and makes recommendations for ensuring follow-up.
