Frequently asked questions

Farm Africa is an innovative charity that reduces poverty in rural eastern Africa by helping farmers grow more, sell more and sell for more: we help farmers to not only boost yields, but also gain access to markets, and add value to their produce.

We place a high priority on environmental sustainability and develop approaches that help farmers to improve their yields and incomes without degrading their natural resources.

Our programmes vary hugely, ranging from helping crops farmers to boost harvests, livestock keepers to improve animal health, and forest coffee growers to reach export markets, but core to all of them is a focus on the financial sustainability of the farmers’ businesses and environmental sustainability.

We are a registered charity in the UK (Registered Charity Number 326901) and a registered company (Registered Company Number 01926828).

Farm Africa currently works in five countries in eastern Africa: Ethiopia, Kenya, Tanzania, Uganda and the DRC. We work with different types of farmers in a range of regions, from dry rangelands to lush, diverse forests. Their situations may vary, but these small-scale farmers face increasing economic and environmental challenges. Find out more in the Where We Work section of the website.

Farm Africa’s strategic plan outlines plans to continue to work in four focus countries (Ethiopia, Kenya, Tanzania and Uganda) while also developing our presence in eastern DR Congo, and reaching a million people per year by 2025.

Our four focus countries cover a wide range of ecosystems and landscapes, from arid and semi-arid lands, to forests and coasts. Ethiopia will remain our largest country programme, while we expand the scale and reach of the programmes in Kenya, Tanzania and Uganda. The range of countries and ecological zones is consistent with our approach to targeting farmers and communities who range from people living in extreme poverty to those who are stepping up to small and larger scale commercial farming and value chains.

We will explore opportunities for regional programmes to include work in countries where Farm Africa does not have a physical presence, as an avenue to develop a track record in new geographies. However, we do not anticipate setting up any new country hub offices in the 2021-5 strategy period.

We cannot respond to individual requests to undertake work in other locations.

Farm Africa receives funding from a variety of donors. Sources of its charitable income include:

• Institutional donors such as the Swedish International Development Cooperation Agency, the Royal Norwegian Embassy in Ethiopia and the European Union
• Direct marketing appeals and legacies
• Foundations and companies based in the UK, Europe, the USA and in Africa
• Individuals who give one-off donations or donate regularly via direct debit or standing order
• Community fundraising

In 2022, our total income was £14.7 million and expenditure was £14.6 million. Farm Africa’s expenditure falls into three main categories:

• Costs of implementing our programmes in Africa (£13.2 million in 2022)
• Fundraising costs (£0.7 million in 2022)
• Support costs, including head office staff and governance (£0.75 million in 2022)

Farm Africa is committed to ensuring that we use our funds wisely and get the maximum impact for every pound we spend. We apply a value for money framework to manage the main identified cost drivers carefully.

For more information read our 2022 Annual Report and Financial Statements (PDF 1.2 MB).

Our 2023 Annual Report and Financial Statements will be published in September 2024.

No. Across all of the countries that Farm Africa works in, national governments have not authorised the commercial production of Genetically Modified Organisms (GMOs) as food crops. Farm Africa works within the parameters of national governments’ legislature on GMO usage. Farm Africa is not engaged in any GMO trials and does not supply GMO products or seeds to any of the farmers that we work with.

You can be assured that we do not sell our donors’ details to other organisations.

When you provide your details we store them securely on our database. We only use these details to contact you about your giving, Farm Africa’s work and how you can support us, unless you ask us not to. You can get in touch with our Supporter Services Team at any time to let us know when and how you would like us to contact you or if you would like to be removed from our mailing list by emailing them on: [email protected]. More information about data protection can be found here.

If you haven’t found the answer to any of your questions here please email us via our contact us form or phone us on +44(0) 20 7430 0440 and we’ll be happy to help you (Monday to Friday 9am to 5pm).

Farm Africa strives to provide the best service possible to anyone who comes in contact with the organisation. We always value any feedback from our supporters, in the form of comments, suggestions or complaints. All such feedback is recorded and reviewed regularly and we endeavour to learn from feedback and to address any issues raised fairly and efficiently.

Farm Africa is registered with the Fundraising Regulator and is committed to best practice in fundraising. As such, we aim to adhere to the Code of Fundraising Practice, as established by the Institute of Fundraising.

Where your concerns relate to fundraising, you should initially contact our complaints co-ordinator, Kate Prowse, via the contact details provided in the document below. Once we have received your complaint, you will receive an initial acknowledgement within two working days, and we will aim to make an initial response (after investigation) within five working days.

Read our full complaints procedure (PDF)

Donating to Farm Africa will help farmers in eastern Africa to grow more, sell more and sell for more.

You can donate to us online, over the phone or by sending a cheque or postal order in the post to Farm Africa, 3-5 Bleeding Heart Yard, London EC1N 8SJ.

Find out more about how you can support us.

Gift Aid is a simple way to make your donation worth more to Farm Africa – at no extra cost to you. You can find details on our Gift Aid page.

Farm Africa is very grateful for the generosity of all our supporters and we are determined to use all donations as effectively as we possibly can. We are proud to say that we spent 90% of our 2022 expenditure on charitable activities.

Farm Africa is committed to ensuring that we use our funds wisely to get the maximum impact for every pound we spend.

Thank you for raising money for us, we really appreciate your support. You can pay it in online – if you are paying on behalf of a group, please select that option.

Or you can send us a cheque made payable to ‘Farm Africa’ to: Freepost RUCX-RZRA-RRZC, Farm Africa, 3 – 5 Bleeding Heart Yard, Off Greville Street, London EC1N 8SJ.

So we can claim the Gift Aid on these donations and make your fundraising efforts go even further, please include your completed sponsor forms and Gift Aid envelopes.

We would really appreciate if you could let us know how you raised the money (and be sure to include your name and address so that we can send you a thank you letter).

Giving in memory of someone special is a way of commemorating their life at a difficult time. You may want to make a donation in memory or ask for donations rather than flowers at a funeral.

Unfortunately we cannot guarantee that your donation will be used for any specific item, as we use all the money we receive where it will be as effective as it possibly can be. We are proud to say that we spent 90% of our 2022 expenditure on charitable activities.

The costs of specific items are different in each country. For example, the price of goats can vary hugely, depending on the region where the goat is being sold, and according to its breed. Farm Africa also provides training for farmers who have not kept goats before to make sure that they know how to keep them healthy. A typical cost for both the goat and the training to look after it is £60.

We are delighted that you are considering leaving a gift in your Will to Farm Africa. You can find all the information you need about leaving us a gift on our Gifts in Wills page. Thank you for your support!

If you have any questions about your donation to Farm Africa, please contact our Supporter Services Team on 020 7430 0440 or [email protected].

Farm Africa is grateful for all donations that we receive and will send a thank you letter for gifts £5 and higher unless you request otherwise. Due to administrative costs, we will not send a thank you letter for gifts less than £5 unless specifically requested.

We will happily acknowledge any value gift via email. If you would prefer to be thanked in this way please contact the Supporter Services team at [email protected] or phone us on +44(0) 20 7430 0440 (Monday to Friday 9am to 5pm).