Synnefa Investor Relations
-Last updated 14th February 2025
Building Synnefa: Our Journey to Transform African Agriculture
I created this page in early 2023 to share our story openly with potential investors. After many conversations, I realized that the most meaningful partnerships start with complete transparency about our vision, approach, and what we believe it takes to truly impact agriculture in Africa.
This page is my attempt to share that story - the challenges we're tackling, what we've learned along the way, and how we're building solutions that can create lasting change.
What happened next surprised me.
I started getting emails from investors who appreciated the honesty. One message particularly stuck with me:
That email confirmed what I'd suspected all along: the best way to build meaningful relationships with investors isn't through polished pitch decks or unrealistic growth projections. It's by telling the real story, openly and honestly.
The Hard Truth About Agriculture in Africa
Let me be direct: Farming in Africa is broken.
I don't say this lightly. I was born and raised in Kenya. I've spent my entire life surrounded by farmers, and for the last 11 years, I've dedicated myself to solving the problems that keep them trapped in poverty.
Here's the reality: Agriculture employs 60% of Africa's population, yet most smallholder farmers barely survive. They wake up before dawn, work their fields all day, and still struggle to pay school fees or put food on the table. Farming should be building wealth, but for millions, it's a poverty trap.
What we've learned is that technology alone isn't enough.
The past decade in African AgTech has taught us valuable lessons. While many innovative solutions have been tried - from apps to sensors, AI to blockchain - we've seen that successful solutions need to go beyond just technology. They need to be deeply rooted in the realities of African farming.
We've observed that sustainable impact comes from balanced growth - not just rapid scaling, but building strong foundations in farmer adoption and unit economics first. This learning has shaped our approach at Synnefa.
Looking back on 2024, I'm more convinced than ever that Synnefa isn't just another organisation. We're building something different, something durable.
What We Actually Do
First, let me give some bit of context. In the GSMA AgriTech Digital Agriculture Maps Report, 2020, it’s highlighted that mobile IoT and digital solutions are key to smart farming, but their deployment is expensive and challenging across Africa due to infrastructure gaps and limited mobile network coverage. This underscores why pure software solutions often struggle to achieve widespread adoption—they rely on systems that many rural areas lack.
Similarly, the GSMA Investment Readiness Toolkit emphasizes the need for diversified agribusiness models. It points out that successful agritech ventures in Africa are those that not only provide digital tools but also address physical infrastructure challenges, like efficient post-harvest processing and climate-resilient farming methods.
This reinforces Synnefa’s approach of integrating hardware (smart greenhouses and solar dryers) with software (FarmCloud). By addressing both physical and digital agricultural challenges, we’re creating a more resilient and scalable model that meets farmers where they are—bridging infrastructure gaps while offering data-driven insights to improve productivity and income.
This brings me to our products and services. We wake up everyday to provide these products and services to farmers in Africa.
1. Smart Greenhouses and Solar dryers: We provide farmers and organisations with greenhouse structures that allow them to grow cash crops in protected spaces or use greenhouses to dry produce from farms to reduce post harvest losses.
2. FarmShield™: We optimise the greenhouses by fitting them with solar powered FarmShield™ IoT sensors localised to our soils and environments to ensure that they use less resources in their operations. FarmShield™ automates fans for drying, monitors crop health, and provides predictive insights, ensuring precise farm management.
3. All this data feeds into FarmCloud™, our digital platform for record-keeping, weather advisory, expense tracking and market linkage, enabling farmers to access financing and premium markets.
This end-to-end solution combines hardware and software to boost productivity, lower risks, and increase incomes, driving sustainable growth across Africa’s agriculture sector.
The results speak for themselves:
- Greenhouse farmers make 625 KES per square meter vs 200 KES in open fields
- Water usage reduced by 30% with FarmShield
- Farmers experienced a 30-45% yield increase and improved crop quality when using Smart Greenhouses.
We did an impact study in 2024 and here are our findings on the impact of Smart Greenhouses
Our Customers
Our solutions serve three types of customers. Each has different needs, but they all share one thing: they want farming to be more predictable and profitable.
Growing Farmers - Most of our customers are smallholder farmers who are ready to take the next step. They typically farm 1-5 acres and want to move beyond rain-fed agriculture. When they start with us, they usually buy one greenhouse to test the waters. Within two to three years, many come back for a second or third. What I love about these farmers is their pragmatism - they don't just take our word for it, they want to see results. And when they do, they tell others. That's how we've grown so far.
Farmer Groups and Cooperatives- These are smart operators who pool resources to get better returns. They particularly love our solar dryers because they solve a real pain point - post-harvest losses. When groups invest together, they can process more produce and access better markets. What's interesting is how they use our FarmCloud™ platform - they've turned it into a tool for managing their collective operations, something we hadn't even planned for initially.
Agricultural Training and Research Centers- While they're our smallest segment, these institutions play a crucial role. They use our greenhouses and systems to train the next generation of farmers. What makes this interesting is how it's creating a pipeline - students who train on our systems often become customers when they start farming. It's not our main focus, but it's creating a natural pathway for growth.
Our Strategy
Building in African agriculture has taught me that the best strategy isn't always the most complex. Here's what's working for us:
1. Focus Where It Matters- We're clear about where we invest our resources. Each greenhouse deployment gives us data that shapes our next move. Our FarmShield™ sensors tell us exactly what crops work best in which regions. We use this knowledge to help new farmers succeed faster. When a farmer succeeds, their neighbours notice. That's better than any marketing campaign we could run.
2. Keep It Local- There's a reason we manufacture in Kenya and hire local talent. We understand the soil, the weather patterns, and most importantly, the farmers. When a storm hits or a crop shows unusual signs, our team can be there within hours, not days. This isn't just about service - it's about survival. Farmers can't wait for solutions to be shipped from overseas.
3. Build Real Partnerships- We're selective about who we work with. Every partnership has to make life easier for our farmers. We've spent years building relationships with agricultural officers who understand their regions, financial institutions that get farming cycles, and produce buyers who value quality. These aren't fancy agreements - they're practical relationships that help farmers succeed.
4. Solve Real Problems- Every feature we build starts with a farmer's problem. Before we add anything to our systems, we ask: Will this help a farmer sleep better at night? Will it put more food on their table? If the answer isn't clearly yes, we don't build it. This approach means we sometimes move slower than others, but it ensures everything we do has real impact.
Who We Are (And Who We're Not)
The above strategy isn't about impressing investors with fancy terms or hockey stick projections. It's about building something that works for African farmers, day after day, season after season.
We are not a startup chasing exponential growth at any cost. We're not promising 7x or 10x returns in under a decade. We've seen what happens when AgTech startups take that path – massive rounds raised, aggressive hiring, then abrupt collapses that leave farmers stranded. Often, venture-backed companies are driven by the need to deliver quick, short-term profits for their investors, which can sometimes overshadow the goal of creating lasting impact. That's a game we're not playing.
Similarly, if your investment strategy is geared towards non-profits – organizations focused solely on impact without the drive for shareholder value or profit – that's not our story either. While non-profits play a crucial role, their reliance on charitable donations may a times limit scalability and sustainability. We are currently seeing this with the change in USAID's international development prioritise that have had a massive knock-on effect to non profits and organisations in Africa.
Synnefa is a for-profit social enterprise with a clear vision: to grow sustainably while generating revenue. Our approach is about balance – driving profit and creating impact. We are not yet profitable but we have a path towards profitability. We believe that with the right blend of time and resources, social enterprises like ours can not only thrive financially but also extend the reach of our products and services for greater global access.
Our Traction
- 21,000 farmers reached in East Africa. Our goal is to get to 1m.
- Over 2 million liters of water saved with Smart IoT sensors
- 17-person team, all based in Kenya
- 29% revenue growth in 2024 on target for $5m in the next few years
- 43% gross profit margin, targeting 50% by 2025
- We raised a $550,000 Pre-Seed Round ($300,000 Impact VC, $250,000 in Grants) in 2021
- Bootstrapping and actively speaking to interested patient equity, grant and impact investors on a possible Seed round in 2025. We are not yet ready for debt given that our customers cannot repay interest rates higher than 10% per annum.
Looking Forward
If what we are building resonates with you – if you want to be part of building something that matters and lasts. Let's talk about what the future of agriculture in Africa can look like, and how we can build it together. I hope this page helped, and if it didn't, please tell me so that I can keep improving it.
This is the raw, unfiltered truth about Synnefa. If it speaks to you, we should talk.