Agrofertil 2021 (IFC-45013)

Countries
  • Paraguay
Geographic location where the impacts of the investment may be experienced.
Financial Institutions
  • International Finance Corporation (IFC)
International, regional and national development finance institutions. Many of these banks have a public interest mission, such as poverty reduction.
Project Status
Proposed
Stage of the project cycle. Stages vary by development bank and can include: pending, approval, implementation, and closed or completed.
Bank Risk Rating
B
Environmental and social categorization assessed by the development bank as a measure of the planned project’s environmental and social impacts. A higher risk rating may require more due diligence to limit or avoid harm to people and the environment. For example, "A" or "B" are risk categories where "A" represents the highest amount of risk. Results will include projects that specifically recorded a rating, all other projects are marked ‘U’ for "Undisclosed."
Voting Date
Jun 10, 2021
Date when project documentation and funding is reviewed by the Board for consideration and approval. Some development banks will state a "board date" or "decision date." When funding approval is obtained, the legal documents are accepted and signed, the implementation phase begins.
Borrower
AGROFERTIL S.A.
A public entity (government or state-owned) provided with funds or financial support to manage and/or implement a project.
Sectors
  • Agriculture and Forestry
The service or industry focus of the investment. A project can have several sectors.
Investment Type(s)
Loan
The categories of the bank investment: loan, grant, guarantee, technical assistance, advisory services, equity and fund.
Investment Amount (USD)
$ 100.00 million
Value listed on project documents at time of disclosure. If necessary, this amount is converted to USD ($) on the date of disclosure. Please review updated project documents for more information.
Project Cost (USD)
$ 100.00 million
Value listed on project documents at time of disclosure. If necessary, this amount is converted to USD ($) on the date of disclosure. Please review updated project documents for more information.
Primary Source

Original disclosure @ IFC website

Updated in EWS May 14, 2021

Disclosed by Bank May 7, 2021


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Project Description
If provided by the financial institution, the Early Warning System Team writes a short summary describing the purported development objective of the project and project components. Review the complete project documentation for a detailed description.

PROJECT DESCRIPTION (short version)
Agrofertil S.A. (“Agrofertil” or the “Company”) is a crop input distributor and agronomic services provider, headquartered in Ciudad del Este, Paraguay. Founded in 1993, Agrofertil has been an IFC client since 2011. The Company assists farmers, cooperatives and small distributors by providing technical support, agricultural inputs and preharvest financing. The proposed investment will be an “A” loan facility of up to US$100 million to be made available through five one-year commitments of up to US$20 million each. The proposed project is to support the operations of Agrofertil and enhance its capacity to provide farmers with pre-harvest financing and technical advice (the “Project”).

 

PROJECT DESCRIPTION (expanded)
Agrofertil S.A. (or the “Company”), founded in 1993, is one of Paraguay’s leading crop input distributor and agronomic services companies. The company currently assists over 2,000 farmers, cooperatives and small distributors providing technical support, agricultural inputs and pre-harvest financing. The company’s headquarters are in Ciudad del Este. Agrofertil has had steady growth over the past decade, currently operating 24 facilities in Paraguay, with a total capacity of over 500,000 tons. As of March 2021, Agrofertil employed 499 direct employees (416 men and 83 women). This number includes 89 temporary employees who are needed during the harvest seasons (i.e., February-March and June-July) to operate the silos. Conditions of employment are defined in the contracts and in the code of ethics which are aligned with local regulations.

Agrofertil has been an IFC client since 2011, when IFC committed a US$15 million working capital facility (#30278) to support the pre-harvest financing needs of its network of farmers. In 2016, IFC’s signed a transaction in the amount of US$ 15 million short-term working capital facility (#37602). In 2020, in response to the COVID-19 pandemic, IFC signed a transaction to provide a short-term tranche amount of US$ 10 million (#44215).

This proposed Project consists of providing Agrofertil with up to US$20 million short-term working capital facility to be re-committed annually up to four times (i.e. total commitment of up to US$20 million per year for a total commitment of US$100 million in the 5 years period). With this new project, Agrofertil is seeking increased financing to support its continued growth in Paraguay.

Investment Description
Here you can find a list of individual development financial institutions that finance the project.

The proposed IFC investment consists of an up to US$20 million A Loan, renewable each year, for a total of five years.

Private Actor 1 Private Actor 1 Role Private Actor 1 Sector Relation Private Actor 2 Private Actor 2 Role Private Actor 2 Sector
- - - - Agrofertil SA Investor Agriculture and Forestry

Contact Information
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ACCESS TO INFORMATION

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ACCOUNTABILITY MECHANISM OF IFC/MIGA

The Compliance Advisor Ombudsman (CAO) is the independent complaint mechanism and fact-finding body for people who believe they are likely to be, or have been, adversely affected by an IFC or MIGA- financed project. If you submit a complaint to the CAO, they may assist you in resolving a dispute with the company and/or investigate to assess whether the IFC is following its own policies and procedures for preventing harm to people or the environment. If you want to submit a complaint electronically, you can email the CAO at CAO@worldbankgroup.org You can learn more about the CAO and how to file a complaint at http://www.cao-ombudsman.org

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