8. November 2011

A Bridge in Two Directions

The current economic crisis has not left gebana unaffected. In the shadow of events on international financial markets, financial institutions have dramatically tightened their lending policies. This leads to

We specifically feel this problem when raising funds for gebana Afrique, gebana Maghreb and gebana Brasil. The funds are needed for the pre-financing of seed and operating materials for the farmers, but also for the immediate payment for the goods after the harvest. Between the harvest and the payment by major customers, up to 12 months can pass. gebana must bridge this period.

Trade financing: A great success!

To circumvent the global shortage of liquidity and maintain the operations of our local partners, we wrote to you, our valued customers, and asked for trade financing. With great success! To date, almost 2 million Swiss francs have been raised at an average interest rate of 5%. Your trade financing secures market access for our smallholder farmers in the Global South even during the crisis.

A heartfelt thank you!

At this point we would like to sincerely thank you for your great support. We are confident that with loyal customers like you we will overcome the crisis. It brings us joy to see that our motto “The bridge from the farmer to you” also works in the opposite direction thanks to trade financing!