UNI2 Microcrédito, a Microfinance Organisation Serving Rural and Farming Communities in Colombia

Responsible investment in agribusinesses, including crop producers, processors, and traders, can drive innovation, improve market linkages, and contribute to local economies. These outcomes are amplified when agribusinesses align their operations with the Committee on World Food Security's Principles for Responsible Investment in Agriculture and Food Systems (CFS-RAI).

This case study is related to the Smallholder Safety Net Up-scaling Programme (SSNUP), which brings together investors to promote sustainable, climate-smart farming practices and improve food security and living standards in developing countries. It is part of a series that aims to analyze how well investees perform and comply with international standards for responsible business conduct, such as CFS-RAI.

Unlike other case studies in this series, UNI2 is a microfinance institution and not an agribusiness. It lends to both urban and rural clients, including agricultural value chain actors. We have included UNI2 to test the versatility and applicability of the Responsible Agricultural Investment (RAI) Tool beyond agribusinesses.

We also evaluated UNI2's alignment with responsible investment principles using an adapted methodology. This included a self-assessment by their management team, as well as interviews facilitated by the International Institute for Sustainable Development to examine the institution's practices and support for responsible behaviours among investees.

UNI2's participation offers valuable insights into how the RAI Tool could be adapted for financial intermediaries, as well as other industries, especially in the primary sector. UNI2 also provided feedback on specific indicators, such as those related to pricing and hiring policies, and made suggestions for improvements in the tool’s scoring and filtering mechanisms. These suggestions were incorporated into later versions of the tool.

The case study illustrates how financial institutions like UNI2 can contribute to responsible agricultural investment, not only through providing capital but also by influencing practices, supporting responsible behaviours, and sharing knowledge to scale sustainable approaches across rural economies.