Africa holds 60% of the world’s uncultivated arable land, yet cultivates barely a quarter of it. Few understand the continent’s untapped potential better than Mahesh Patel, Founder and Chairman of Export Trading Group (ETG) and the Empowering Farmers Foundation (EFF).
Speaking at the India-Africa Seed Summit 2025 in Nairobi under the theme “Seeds of Partnership for Food Security and Resilience,” Patel emphasized that Africa’s transformation into a global food basket is possible with the right seeds, technologies, and farmer-focused policies. Drawing on 45 years of experience across the continent, he outlined a vision where innovation meets local realities.
From humble beginnings to continental impact
Patel’s story is emblematic of African entrepreneurship. Growing up in Nairobi, he helped run his father’s small grain shop, learning the value of supply chains and customer trust. After college in India, he returned home and joined a British-owned Export Finance Company as an auditor.
In 1981, with family and friends’ support, he purchased the debt-laden company. Instead of selling imports across Africa, Patel reversed the flow, turning the supply chains outward to export African produce globally. What began in a one-room office at the Embassy Hotel in Dar es Salaam with trips to remote villages collecting leftover subsistence crops has grown into one of Africa’s most powerful agricultural conglomerates.
A farmer-first philosophy
ETG’s rise was rooted in Patel’s unwavering focus on farmers. The company guaranteed markets for their produce, paid fair prices and invested in roads, warehouses, tractors and skill development programs. The transformation was profound. In Tanzania’s Kapunga rice project, yields skyrocketed from 700 kilograms to 7 tons per hectare, lifting families out of poverty and restoring dignity to farming communities.
Patel’s philosophy extends to Empowering Farmers Foundation, which has reached over 220,000 farming families across Kenya, Mozambique, Tanzania and Zambia in the last decade. EFF distributes trees, supports climate-resilient agriculture and helps farmers view agriculture as a business, not just a livelihood.
Scaling through innovation and partnerships
Patel also proposed a five-year roadmap for India-Africa collaboration: seed innovation hubs, farmer training, inclusive finance, regulatory alignment and market integration. ETG itself has expanded across six continents, with stakeholders including Standard Chartered and Mitsui & Co., reflecting the global recognition of Africa’s agricultural potential.
Between 2005 and 2015, Africa’s economy grew by 50%, nearly double the global average. Patel and ETG exemplify how entrepreneurship when coupled with a farmer-first ethos can catalyze continental growth.
A new chapter in African agribusiness
Patel’s address at the Seed Summit was more than a keynote it was a call to action. Africa’s vast resources, when combined with innovation, investment and dedicated partnerships, can feed the world while lifting millions from poverty.
As ETG and EFF demonstrate, African entrepreneurship is not only resilient but transformative. From humble village-level initiatives to global conglomerates, Patel’s journey shows that Africa’s agricultural revolution is already underway and its seeds are finally bearing fruit.
