Yet, while climate finance is increasing, adaptation dollars aren’t keeping pace with the crisis. Of the $660 billion in climate finance, only $7 billion—just 1%—went to agrifood adaptation. Without urgent investment, millions of smallholder farmers will struggle to sustain their livelihoods, putting food systems worldwide at risk.
Investing along the capital continuum offers a powerful solution. This event will explore how innovative capital deployment can help agribusinesses scale sustainably, build resilience, and unlock lasting impact for farmers and communities. Experts and practitioners will share insights on de-risking investment, the role of patient capital and private capital, and real-world case studies from emerging markets.
As part of London Climate Action Week, join us to discuss how we can close the adaptation gap and finance a future where agrifood systems—and the farmers who sustain them—can thrive.
Amal-Lee Amin joined British International Investment in February 2020 to lead implementation of the climate strategy for aligning to the goals of the Paris Agreement. A passionate advocate for sustainable development, she now also leads teams on gender and diversity and advisory. Amal-Lee has had senior advisor roles including the UK’s COP26 Presidency, the Green Climate Fund and is currently a member of the independent High Level Expert Group on Climate Finance, the OECD Advisory Group on Climate and Economic Resilience and the UAE’s Independent Climate Change Accelerator. From 2015-2020 Amal-Lee was Chief of Climate Change at the Inter-American Development Bank, working across the MDB system to scale climate finance in developing countries. For 10 years Amal-Lee led policy on sustainable energy and climate change in key roles within the UK Government’s Cabinet Office, DECC, DEFRA and Foreign and Commonwealth Office. From 2010-15 Amal-Lee developed E3G’s international climate finance programme, with focus on China and Latin America.
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Ayesha Khan leads Acumen's work in Pakistan, setting strategy, overseeing the investing and leadership work, and spearheading business development efforts, having joined joined Acumen in 2016 as the Associate Director of Portfolio. Ayesha has a strong background in business strategy, economic policy and international development. She has previously worked as the head of strategy at the largest bank in Pakistan, where she was responsible for aligning corporate focus, defining core capabilities and articulating a comprehensive plan to achieve long-term growth targets. She has also worked in New York as a management consultant with McKinsey and Company, where she primarily concentrated on the financial sector. Ayesha holds a doctorate from the Harvard Business School, where she focused on understanding how to build successful businesses in emerging markets. Ayesha also holds a master's in International Development (MPA-ID) from the Harvard Kennedy School, as well as an undergraduate degree in Economics from Princeton University.
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Eugene Amusin is Head of Strategy and Client Solutions, for Social Finance at Citi. Eugene is responsible for designing strategy and delivering client solutions with social impact in emerging markets. He provides industry specialist support globally across sector working with growth companies, financial institutions and corporates. Eugene leads collaborations with development finance institutions, multilateral agencies and foundations with track record innovative transactions including the first microfinance carbon offset financing, mobile collections solution for smallholder farmers, first microfinance IPO on the London Stock Exchange and milestone off-grid solar financings. Eugene has more than 20 years of structuring, product management and technology with Citi. Having started his career as software engineer, his product background extends from cash management and securities to foreign exchange, financing and capital markets. Eugene is a proud dad of two and based in London.
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Samir Ibrahim is the CEO and founder of SunCulture, a leading agriculture and climate technology organization serving several markets across sub-Saharan Africa. SunCulture helps smallholder farmers grow more food with climate technology, carbon financing, and a digital marketplace, and is the largest solar irrigation company in Africa. The company is backed by investors including Reed Hastings and Eric Schmidt, was selected by the World Economic Forum as a Technology Pioneer, and has been named as one of the World’s Most Innovative Companies by Fast Company. Samir recently served on the board of the Kenya Revenue Authority (IRS-equivalent of Kenya) and gave a TED talk titled "How hip-hop can make climate action cool".
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Tamer El-Raghy is the Managing Director of the Acumen Resilient Agriculture Fund (ARAF), a $58 million impact fund and the world’s first equity fund designed to build the climate resilience of smallholder farmers. Tamer has more than 20 years of private equity, venture capital, M&A, entrepreneurial, and innovation experience in Africa, the Middle East, the United States, and Europe. Prior to joining ARAF, Tamer was with responsAbility AG as head of Agri&Food PE Fund in Africa where he co-led the structuring, due diligence, and closing of transactions. Before responsAbility AG, he led Cargill’s growth strategy and M&A activities in Africa with a focus on animal nutrition, animal protein, and commodities value chains in Egypt, Morocco, Kenya, Zambia, and Ghana. Tamer started his career as a materials engineer, where he co-invented a new class of materials, held nine patents, and founded 3-ONE-2 LLC, as a joint venture, commercializing the technology for both civilian and defense applications. Tamer earned an MBA from the New York University (NYU) Stern School of Business, a PhD in Materials Engineering from Drexel University, and a BSc in Metallurgical Engineering from Cairo University.
Acumen is a global force of entrepreneurs, investors, philanthropists, and social innovators working together to build a world based on dignity. We were founded by Jacqueline Novogratz on the radical idea that business, when cultivated with moral imagination, can break the cycle of poverty. We invest in transformational companies, build sustainable markets, and prepare leaders with the tools they need to create a more just and inclusive future. Since 2001, we have scaled companies and shaped markets in some of the hardest-to-reach communities on the planet, impacting over half-a-billion lives.
In agriculture, Acumen invests along the continuum of capital to build climate resilience for smallholder farmers. Beginning with the patient capital of our early-stage Trellis initiative through to blended finance through the Acumen Resilient Agriculture Fund (ARAF). Learn more at www.acumen.org.
