Ethiopia: Ethiopia RESTORE+
The program supports 1,000,000 smallholder farmers in the dairy, poultry, small ruminant and horticulture value chains, working with market actors on constraints that limit performance and income.
Signature Programmes
Building Food Systems from the Ground Up
Our Signature Programs are ambitious plans, developed country by country, for strengthening agriculture at scale. They mark a strategic shift, driven by the aim of reaching millions of households, a goal that work organised around single communities and projects could not meet on its own. We define our Signature Programs as:
“A long-term (8–10 years) strategic programming framework that articulates our approach to empowering smallholder farmers as they lift themselves out of poverty and hunger at scale, while caring for the Earth.”
These programs are designed in close collaboration with communities, private sector partners and governments to build food systems that are inclusive and responsive to markets.
Each program focuses on value chains with strong potential and works on constraints such as low productivity and limited access to markets and agricultural finance. We combine innovation and inclusive financing with practices that help farmers manage climate risk, so that the changes we support can reach scale and remain locally owned.
What Sets Signature Programs Apart
Heifer Africa’s Signature Programs are guided by our Program Model, which puts smallholder farmers at the centre of food systems. These programs are distinct because they:
Align with national development priorities and food system strategies.
Form partnerships with the private sector, governments and financial institutions.
Focus on value chains with strong potential, such as dairy, beef, poultry, horticulture, rice, oilseeds and bananas.
Combine practices that help farmers manage climate risk with financing approaches such as microleasing, pay-at-harvest models and capital for savings and credit cooperatives.
Prioritise women and youth, equipping them to lead within agricultural value chains.
As we often say,
“We design for scale, broader partnership, permanence and local ownership, so that systems work for farmers long after the program ends.”
Where We Work and What We're Achieving
Our Signature Programs currently operate across eight African countries. Each program builds inclusive financing into its design to drive impact.
Kenya: Practice for Change (P4C)
Accelerating improvements in income and livelihoods for 625,000 households in Kenya by 2030, through work across agricultural value chains, including beef, dairy, poultry and horticulture.
Malawi: Malawi Accelerate Signature Program (MASP)
Building the economic resilience of 500,000 smallholder farmers, to raise incomes and improve livelihoods by 2030. The program centres on markets, improving how efficiently agricultural markets work by addressing market failures and uncompetitive conditions across the beef, dairy, banana, rice and oilseed value chains.
Nigeria: Naija Unlock
Building demand and market opportunities to help 2,000,000 poultry, rice and tomato farmers close their living income gap, by investing in target value chains and promoting import substitution, supported by innovation and emerging agricultural technologies to reach impact at scale.
Rwanda: Rwanda Agribusiness Transformation Signature Program
Drawing on private sector partnerships, technology and digital tools to integrate 300,000 smallholder farmers into market systems and improve production efficiency.
Senegal: Building Women and Youth Economic Resilience in the Sahel
Enabling 216,410 households in the Sahel region to build economic resilience and improve their incomes and livelihoods, by strengthening their competitiveness within target value chains.
Tanzania: Transform Agriculture in Tanzania (TRANSFORM)
Reducing the living income gap for 500,000 smallholder farmers in the dairy, sunflower, horticulture, meat and poultry value chains, by modernising production practices and introducing improved technologies and quality inputs, while strengthening market linkages.
Uganda: Inclusive Markets for Agribusiness Agenda
Strengthening the competitiveness and employability of 400,000 smallholder farmers in the dairy, oilseed, poultry and horticulture value chains, while building their resilience, to improve livelihoods by 2030.
Signature Impact Across Africa (since 1974)
2.79 million
smallholder families reached directly
23.9 million
reached indirectly through improvements to market systems
4.89 million
trained in practices that respond to climate and market conditions
8 countries
have Signature Programs currently operating
Why It Matters
Signature Programs are built around each country’s markets and priorities. They reflect Heifer’s ambition to change how food systems work, so that they are inclusive and shaped by farmers, with climate resilience built in. By aligning with the principles of Sustainable Locally Led Development and anchoring programs in market systems development and agricultural financing, we aim to support lasting change that communities can sustain beyond our involvement.
