Bonergie Irrigation has received $ 2.5 million from investment firm InfraCo Africa for the deployment of its solar-powered irrigation equipment for farmers in Senegal.
Bonergie irrigation has signed a shareholders’ agreement and a financing agreement with nfraCo Africa, an investment business of the Private Infrastructure Development Group (PIDG).
This is a 2019 joint venture with Bonergie Senegal, a company situated in Dakar, Senegal’s capital. As a result, InfraCo Africa has committed to providing $ 2.4 million to Bonergie Irrigation to help it expand in Senegal.
The investment will enable Bonergie to provide solar photovoltaic irrigation systems to Senegalese farmers. This technology substitutes diesel-powered irrigation systems, which are both expensive to operate and pollute the environment. The joint venture is already in the second phase of its growth project, thanks to the funding.
According to InfraCo Africa “It is widely acknowledged that farmers who rely on rain-fed agriculture are vulnerable to the effects of climate change on temperature and rainfall regimes”.
Senegal has an irrigable potential of almost 350,000 hectares, excluding lowlands and mangroves (CMGP). The West African country currently only uses 130,000 hectares of its irrigable land.
InfraCo Africa revealed that the funds provided to Bonergie will be enough to install 3,000 solar-powered irrigation systems. The installation of these systems will place a strain on subsurface water supplies. Bonergie also wants to build 500 water-efficient drip irrigation systems by the completion of the project’s second phase in 2023, in order to lessen the project’s effect on the water table.