Grant Writing Sample

Cherrie K Grant Proposal One Acre Fund solves one of humanity’s most pressing problems – hunger – through innovative market-based methods focused on African smallholder farmers. In response to the painful paradox that majority of the world’s hungriest people are poor farmers who grow their own food, our organization supplies comprehensive financing and training support to African smallholder farmers to increase their harvests, incomes, and standards of living. Our revenue-generating model offers asset-based loans within a flexible repayment system where farmers pay for high-quality seeds and fertilizer received on credit. We then deliver these inputs within walking distance of every farmer we serve. Similarly, training on updated agricultural techniques is made available by One Acre Fund’s dense networks of homegrown field officers.

Lastly, we provide storage solutions for farmers to time crop sales for profit maximization. 70% of our field expenses are financed through farmer loan repayments, while donor funds cover the shortfall. Through the slogan ‘Farmers First,’ our comprehensive support comes with a view towards long-term financial stability and organizational expansion in a bid to transform the lives of even more farmers.

We are delighted to have reached our 2020 goal of serving a million farmers last year, from a pilot group of 38 Kenyan farmers in 2006. As global systems attempt to come to terms with the COVID-19 pandemic, we believe even more in the urgency of our mission. Our new goal is to serve 10 million farmers by 2030. We are seeking partners to achieve this ambitious goal; we believe that Stichting DOEN would be an ideal partner.

One Acre Fund’s model creates a sustainable food system as championed by Stichting DOEN. Smallholder farmers are on the front lines of the climate change crisis. Those who lack the means or methods to increase their yield, especially in the face of a changing climate, make use of their environments in unsustainable ways that only accelerate the effects of climate change and threaten long-term agricultural security. Maximizing the use of existing farmland through our model disrupts this cycle and protects natural ecosystems by preventing their exploitation for more food. Over and above that, One Acre Fund is a vanguard in establishing circular, inclusive, and regenerative economies. In our years-long service of African smallholder farmers, we have revitalized the livelihoods of some of the most neglected global workers in a financially and ecologically sustainable way, and we seek Stichting DOEN’s partnership to continue to do so for decades to come.