For millions of smallholder farmers across Africa, a single storm, pest outbreak, or market dip can destroy months of labour and investment. But Yemert, a fast-growing agritech startup, is rewriting this narrative by placing financial security, market access, and dignity back into the hands of farmers.
Through its simple USSD platform, *347*168#, Yemert offers crop insurance, access to reliable buyers, and climate finance opportunities, all without the need for smartphones or internet access.
In this edition of Techparley’s DRIVE100, where we spotlight Africa’s most impactful startups, we turn our attention to how Yemert, co-founded by Udokanma Georgewill is redefining how smallholder farmers in Africa access crop insurance, market opportunities, and climate finance.
“We empower smallholder farmers in Africa who face unpredictable weather, fluctuating market prices, and limited access to affordable crop insurance. These challenges threaten their income, food security, and ability to invest in their future,” Georgewill told Techparley.
How Yemert is Empowering Farmers
Georgewill reveals Yemert was born out of a deep understanding of the everyday struggles smallholder farmers face. Unpredictable weather patterns, fluctuating market prices, and a lack of affordable insurance often cripple their ability to plan ahead.
Georgewill and her team recognised that technology could bridge this gap, if designed with inclusivity in mind.
“We give smallholder farmers in Nigeria and across Africa control over their income and future. We provide accessible crop insurance and direct market access, making sure their hard work pays off, even when the unexpected happens,” Georgewill explains.
This low-tech innovation ensures that no farmer is left behind. By blending financial inclusion with sustainability, Yemert empowers farmers to thrive financially while contributing positively to the environment.
What Makes Yemert Different
While there are other agricultural solutions in Africa’s market, few have succeeded in reaching the last mile. Many require smartphones, internet access, or literacy levels beyond what rural farmers can easily manage. Yemert breaks those barriers with its USSD-driven platform, making advanced financial tools as easy to access as sending a text.
“Other solutions exist, but most overlook Africa’s smallholder farmers, or require smartphones, making them inaccessible. Yemert is designed for every farmer, with our USSD making tech adoption effortless,” Georgewill said.
Unlike its competitors, Yemert doesn’t stop at insurance. It combines market access, insurance coverage, and climate incentives into a single ecosystem. This all-in-one model not only protects farmers but also increases their income potential and builds resilience against climate shocks.
The startup has piloted its service with thousands of farmers across Nigeria, receiving overwhelmingly positive feedback. Farmers report feeling more confident in their ability to plan, invest, and grow.
Strategic partnerships have also been pivotal. Collaborations with MTN MoMo PSB, WAVE (by the Ministry of Women Affairs), and various farmers’ cooperatives are enabling Yemert to expand rapidly. With these alliances, the company is positioning itself for national and continental scale.
Meet the Team
Yemert’s strength lies in its people. The founding team combines over 28 years of collective experience in technology, business, and field operations.
- Udokanma Georgewill, Co-founder and CEO, brings strategic leadership and an unyielding vision for inclusive agricultural transformation.
- Precious Opusunju, Engineering Lead, drives the product’s technical development and scalability.
Supported by an experienced advisory board, Yemert’s leadership understands both the technology and the human realities of farming in Africa.
Overcoming Challenges in the Field
No innovation journey is without its hurdles. For Yemert, gaining trust among rural communities and scaling technology in low-connectivity regions have been major challenges.
The company says it addresses this by deploying community-led onboarding programmes, using local influencers and cooperatives to build trust from within.
The team also emphasises education, ensuring farmers understand how to use the service and benefit from it. As Georgewill admits, funding to scale remains a challenge, but partnerships and phased growth plans are helping them stay on track.
In the next 12 months, Yemert plans to onboard tens of thousands of farmers, with measurable financial and environmental impact. But the long-term vision stretches much further. Within two to five years, the startup aims to empower millions of farmers across Africa.
Rewriting the Future of Farming
Africa’s total food and agribusiness market is projected to be worth $1 trillion by 2030. Despite the growth, Georgewill identifies fragmentation as one of its biggest obstacles. Too often, innovators operate in silos without integrated support systems, slowing progress and innovation.
Georgewill believes that governments play a pivotal role in helping startups like Yemert thrive. From digital infrastructure support and startup-friendly regulations to tax incentives for sustainable innovation, she calls for stronger collaboration between the public and private sectors.
She also called for a more collaborative ecosystem where funding, mentorship, market access, and infrastructure work together seamlessly. Only then, she argues, can startups reach their full potential and create real impact.
Yemert is more than a startup, it’s a movement for agricultural dignity and resilience in Africa. By combining innovation with empathy, and technology with accessibility, Udokanma Georgewill and her team are ensuring that the continent’s farmers are not left behind in the digital revolution.
Talking Points
By enabling farmers to access insurance, market linkages, and climate finance through a simple USSD code (347168#), Yemert effectively bridges the digital divide for rural communities with limited internet access or smartphone penetration.
This accessibility-first design makes Yemert a standout in Africa’s agritech space. The ability for any farmer, regardless of location or device type, to insure their crops and connect directly with buyers represents a major leap forward for financial inclusion and agricultural resilience.
At Techparley, we recognise how innovations like Yemert can transform the agriculture value chain by injecting stability, predictability, and opportunity into a sector often plagued by volatility. By blending crop insurance with market access and climate incentives, Yemert addresses not only the farmers’ immediate needs but also the broader sustainability agenda.
As Yemert scales, there lies a powerful opportunity to redefine what inclusive agritech can look like. With the right strategic and financial support, Yemert could become a catalyst for climate-smart, financially empowered farming across Africa.
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