Sahel Capital, a leading investment manager specializing in the food and agriculture sectors across sub-Saharan Africa, has successfully provided a $1,500,000 working capital loan through its Social Enterprise Fund for Agriculture in Africa (SEFAA). This investment is part of SEFAA’s broader mission to enhance economic opportunities for smallholder farmers by strengthening the social enterprises that support them.
The beneficiary of the investment is NULLA GROUP, a Cameroon-based maize aggregator and processor. At its core, Nulla Group sustainably produces maize grain on a farm located in the West Region of Cameroon, while building a robust agribusiness ecosystem. The company’s aggregation model is central to its business as it connects smallholder farmers to a stable and fair market, empowering them with enhanced productivity through advanced technology and efficient logistics. This investment reinforces SEFAA’s commitment to financing high-impact agricultural enterprises in underserved markets, with a strong emphasis on gender inclusion, local value creation, and smallholder empowerment.
Despite Cameroon’s strong agricultural fundamentals, few financial institutions are active in funding local agribusiness SMEs. By investing in Nulla Group, SEFAA fills a critical financing gap, enabling the company to expand operations, stabilize its supply chain, and deepen its relationships with maize producers.
“We are proud to support Nulla Group, a women-led enterprise that is building resilient supply chains and transforming the maize value chain in Cameroon,” said Aïcha Haidara, Vice President at Sahel Capital. “The company’s integrated sourcing model and processing capabilities are not only improving quality and traceability but also ensuring that farmers—especially women—benefit from fairer pricing and consistent market access.”
“We are excited about this partnership with Sahel Capital, which gives us the means to scale our operations and improve service delivery to our farmers and clients,” said Liza Kina Idum, Founder and CEO of Nulla Group. “This investment will allow us to source higher volumes from our network of 1,700 smallholder farmers, and ensure that we remain a reliable partner in Cameroon’s evolving maize ecosystem.”
Nulla Group’s inclusive model prioritizes partnerships with smallholder farmers, many of whom are women, and provides technical support to improve productivity and incomes. With this investment, SEFAA is advancing its gender-lens strategy by supporting a company that actively promotes female leadership and economic participation of rural women—two pillars of Sahel Capital’s mission.
This marks SEFAA’s first investment in Cameroon, and the third in Francophone Africa, as Sahel Capital continues to expand its reach across the region. The fund aims to support companies that serve as catalysts for rural transformation, food system resilience, and inclusive growth across sub-Saharan Africa.
Sahel Capital currently manages two funds: Fund for Agricultural Finance in Nigeria (“FAFIN”), which has investments in SME agribusinesses in Nigeria, and Social Enterprise Fund for Agriculture in Africa (“SEFAA”), which provides primarily structured debt to agribusiness SMEs across 13 countries in sub-Saharan Africa. Sahel Capital is also raising capital for a successor fund – Sahel Capital Agribusiness Fund II, which will focus on investment opportunities across West Africa.
EPENA LAW advised SEFAA on this transaction.