Press release -
Swedfund invests in resource efficiency and climate resilience for smallholder farmers in India
Efficient crop storage, improved access to finance and digital solutions play an important role in reducing waste and strengthening resilience in India’s agricultural sector. To support the development of such solutions, Swedfund invests USD 7.5 million in the Indian agri-tech company Arya.ag.
The agriculture sector employs around 40 percent of India’s population and plays an important role in food security and rural livelihoods. At the same time, many smallholder farmers face increasing challenges related to climate change, post-harvest losses and limited access to finance. Arya addresses these challenges by combining efficient storage, crop-backed financing and digital tools that help reduce waste, improve price realisation and strengthen farmers’ economic resilience.
“More efficient storage, financing and trading of agricultural produce contribute to more resilient food systems. Through this investment, we support solutions that reduce waste, strengthen climate adaptation and increase inclusion in agricultural value chains. Arya demonstrates how digitalisation and resource efficiency can deliver both impact and financial sustainability,” says Gunilla Nilsson, Investment Director for Energy & Climate at Swedfund.
Swedfund’s investment will help scale Arya.ag’s technology platform and expand access to financing linked to stored agricultural produce. By reducing post-harvest losses and improving liquidity for smallholder farmers, the investment strengthens resource efficiency across the value chain and supports more stable incomes.
The investment is expected to support SDG 10 by strengthening economic resilience for vulnerable smallholder farmers, and SDG 13 through improved climate adaptation in agriculture.
The investment is a co-investment together with GEF Capital Partners’ South Asia Growth Fund III, the International Finance Corporation (IFC) and British International Investment (BII), the UK’s development finance institution.
About Arya.ag
Arya.ag is India’s largest grain commerce platform, providing post-harvest storage, financing and digital trading solutions. Operating through a nationwide warehouse network, the company supports farmers and farmer producer organisations by improving market access, reducing post-harvest losses and strengthening transparency in agricultural value chains.
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About Swedfund
Swedfund is Sweden’s development finance institution with the mission to reduce poverty through sustainable investments in developing countries. Swedfund plays an important role in the implementation of the 2030 Agenda and the Paris Agreement on climate. Swedfund shares the same goal as development cooperation in general, but the tools Swedfund uses are different. Swedfund has two instruments to fulfil its mission: sustainable investments in the private sector and technical feasibility studies through the Project Accelerator targeting the public sector.
Swedfund's investments contribute to the creation of decent jobs and increased access to essential products and services such as electricity and food. Swedfund is a long-term investor and is additional and catalytic through its investments and by mobilising private capital. Swedfund's feasibility studies support sustainable public infrastructure development, trade, and export opportunities for Swedish solutions.
We are part of Swedish development cooperation, and we measure and report all our results. As a state-owned company, Swedfund is managed by the Ministry of Finance and financed through portfolio reflows and annual capital injections for which the Swedish Ministry for Foreign Affairs is responsible.
For more information: please visit www.swedfund.se/en
