Agricultural Finance and Credit Management Training Course

Duration 5 days 10 modules · 33 contact hours
Level Intermediate Certificate on completion
Who attends Agricultural Credit Officers, Relationship Managers and others
Fee from USD 1,100 KSh 95,000 for Kenyan organisations
Where 52 cities + online See dates by city
Next start 9 Nov 2026 Course code SD-AA-050

Before you join: Participants should understand basic lending terms, including principal, interest, collateral, repayment schedules and financial statements.

Dates & prices

Two start dates a month in every city, and live online on weekdays or weekends. Fees are per participant; classroom fees include tuition, materials, lunch and refreshments, and the certificate.

Suggest a date or city

Showing the next six months. Later dates, other cities and private deliveries for your team are available on request.

Course overview

Agricultural lenders must make credit decisions where income is seasonal, production risks are material, collateral may be difficult to realise, and borrowers often keep limited formal records. Farm households may combine crop, livestock, trading and wage income, while agribusinesses depend on supply contracts, input availability, storage capacity and buyer payment cycles. Weak assessment can produce loans that appear affordable at disbursement but fail when yields, prices, weather or market access change.

This course equips participants to assess agricultural borrowers, structure suitable facilities and manage repayment risk through the full credit cycle. Participants analyse farm and agribusiness cash flows, calculate debt-service capacity, assess collateral, review production and market risks, and prepare defensible credit recommendations. The course covers seasonal lending, term finance, value chain finance, guarantees, insurance, portfolio monitoring, early-warning indicators and recovery approaches. It also examines expected credit loss concepts and the information needed for sound provisioning decisions.

Teaching combines concise technical briefings with agricultural lending cases, borrower-file reviews, cash-flow modelling, group credit committee work and repayment-risk simulations. Participants apply methods to realistic cases involving smallholders, commercial farms, producer organisations, input dealers and commodity processors. They leave with a practical agricultural credit appraisal pack containing a farm cash-flow model, credit memorandum structure, risk-rating checklist, monitoring plan and collections action framework.

The course is suited to professionals working in banks, microfinance institutions, development finance institutions, cooperatives, agricultural projects and firms financing rural supply chains. It is particularly useful where staff need to improve the quality, consistency and turnaround of agricultural credit decisions.

What you will be able to do

  • Analyse farm and agribusiness financial statements, production records and seasonal cash flows
  • Construct enterprise budgets and debt-service capacity forecasts for agricultural borrowers
  • Apply the Five Cs of Credit to agricultural lending proposals
  • Structure seasonal, term and value chain finance facilities against repayment capacity
  • Assess production, market, climate, collateral and counterparty risks using credit risk matrices
  • Prepare an agricultural credit memorandum with recommendation, conditions and covenants
  • Design borrower monitoring plans using early-warning indicators and field verification
  • Develop arrears management and recovery actions for distressed agricultural facilities

Benefits of attending

For you

  • Produce clearer agricultural credit recommendations supported by borrower cash-flow evidence
  • Recognise repayment risks before disbursement and during crop or livestock production cycles
  • Discuss facility terms, collateral and covenants confidently with borrowers and credit committees
  • Build practical monitoring plans for farms, cooperatives and agribusiness borrowers
  • Handle early arrears with structured recovery actions rather than reactive follow-up

For your organisation

  • Improve consistency of agricultural loan appraisal across branches and relationship teams
  • Reduce avoidable repayment stress through cash-flow-based facility structuring
  • Strengthen portfolio visibility using seasonal monitoring and early-warning indicators
  • Improve documentation quality for credit committees, audits and provisioning reviews
  • Support responsible finance for producers, value chain actors and rural enterprises

Course modules

10 modules over 5 days

Participants can explain how agricultural production and markets shape lending decisions.

  • Agricultural production cycles and their effects on borrowing requirements
  • Farm household income sources separated from enterprise operating cash flows
  • Commodity price formation, basis risk and buyer payment timing
  • Value chain mapping from input supply through processing and export
  • Seasonality calendar linking production milestones, costs and expected receipts
  • Rural financial market failures affecting borrower access and lender costs

Participants can analyse borrower records and construct decision-useful agricultural financial information.

  • Enterprise budgets built from yields, prices, inputs and labour
  • Partial budgets used to assess proposed production or technology changes
  • Income statements adjusted for household withdrawals and noncash expenses
  • Balance sheet analysis covering assets, liabilities and owner equity
  • Working capital cycle measured through inventory, receivables and payables
  • Financial ratios interpreted for liquidity, profitability, leverage and repayment capacity

Participants can forecast agricultural cash flows and determine affordable repayment schedules.

  • Monthly cash-flow forecasts aligned with planting, harvest and sales dates
  • 13-week rolling cash forecast for input dealers and processors
  • Debt-service coverage ratio calculated from projected net operating cash flow
  • Sensitivity analysis testing yield, price, cost and payment-delay assumptions
  • Repayment schedules matched to commodity marketing windows and collection patterns
  • Household expenditure stress tested against farm cash-generation capacity

Participants can complete structured agricultural credit assessments and assign justified risk ratings.

  • Five Cs of Credit applied to farm and agribusiness proposals
  • Character evidence gathered from repayment history, references and site visits
  • Capacity assessed through cash flow, management ability and production records
  • Capital reviewed through equity contribution, retained earnings and asset ownership
  • Conditions evaluated for weather, markets, regulation and commodity outlook
  • Credit risk matrix scoring probability, impact, mitigants and residual exposure

Participants can match agricultural finance products and terms to borrower needs and repayment sources.

  • Seasonal production loans structured around crop budgets and harvest proceeds
  • Term loans matched to equipment life, depreciation and projected cash flow
  • Revolving facilities designed for inventory purchases and trading cycles
  • Warehouse receipt finance secured by verified commodity stocks
  • Contract farming finance linked to off-taker agreements and payment assignments
  • Guarantees and agricultural insurance incorporated into facility risk mitigation

Participants can evaluate security arrangements and specify enforceable lending conditions.

  • Collateral types assessed for ownership, value, liquidity and enforceability
  • Loan-to-value ratios adjusted for price volatility and forced-sale discounts
  • Movable asset security registered through applicable collateral registries
  • Land tenure verification addressing title, leasehold and customary rights
  • Personal guarantees evaluated against guarantor capacity and net worth
  • Conditions precedent, covenants and drawdown controls documented clearly

Participants can identify major agricultural risks and select proportionate credit mitigants.

  • Production risk assessment covering pests, disease, inputs and husbandry practices
  • Climate risk screening using rainfall patterns, water access and location exposure
  • Price risk managed through contracts, diversification and conservative assumptions
  • Market risk reviewed through buyer concentration, quality requirements and logistics
  • Insurance policies checked for insured perils, exclusions and claims procedures
  • Scenario analysis combines drought, price decline and delayed buyer payment

Participants can assess value chain finance structures and their risks for different borrower groups.

  • Value chain finance mapped through goods, funds and information flows
  • Out-grower schemes assessed for governance, side-selling and payment controls
  • Producer organisation lending tested for governance, records and member commitments
  • Input supplier credit analysed for stock controls and farmer repayment mechanisms
  • Invoice discounting assessed against buyer creditworthiness and assignment terms
  • Gender-responsive lending considers asset ownership, mobility and decision authority

Participants can monitor agricultural portfolios and escalate emerging repayment risks promptly.

  • Portfolio segmentation by commodity, geography, product and borrower size
  • Early-warning indicators tracked through field reports, yields and payment delays
  • Farm monitoring visits planned around critical production and marketing milestones
  • Covenant compliance reviewed using financial reports, inspections and account activity
  • PAR ageing analysis identifies delinquency trends and collection priorities
  • IFRS 9 expected credit loss inputs linked to portfolio risk evidence

Participants can select appropriate arrears actions and apply course methods to their portfolio.

  • Arrears triage separates temporary stress from structural borrower distress
  • Collections contact plans record commitments, dates and responsible officers
  • Restructuring tests revised cash flow, viability and borrower contribution
  • Workout agreements specify repayment terms, security actions and monitoring triggers
  • Recovery options compared using cost, timing, legal position and relationship impact
  • Ninety-day application plan prioritises appraisal and monitoring process improvements

Exercises and examples are adapted to each cohort's sectors and roles.

What you take back to work

  1. Agricultural credit memorandum template
  2. Seasonal farm cash-flow model
  3. Enterprise budget worksheet
  4. Agricultural borrower risk-rating checklist
  5. Portfolio early-warning indicator dashboard
  6. Arrears and recovery action plan

Who should attend

  • Agricultural Credit Officers — assess and recommend farm and agribusiness facilities
  • Relationship Managers — structure lending solutions for rural and agribusiness clients
  • Credit Analysts — strengthen cash-flow, collateral and risk assessments
  • Microfinance Managers — manage seasonal lending and rural portfolio quality
  • Development Finance Staff — appraise agricultural finance schemes and guarantee programmes
  • Cooperative Finance Managers — control member lending, repayment and arrears exposure

Skills and tools covered

Agricultural credit appraisalFarm cash-flow analysisLoan structuringCollateral assessmentPortfolio monitoringArrears management

Tools and standards

Five Cs of Credit, Debt-Service Coverage Ratio, IFRS 9 Expected Credit Loss, Value Chain Finance

How the course runs

Training methodology

The course uses short instructor briefings to introduce credit methods, followed by borrower-file analysis, farm budgeting, cash-flow modelling and credit committee discussions. Participants work with cases covering crop farms, livestock enterprises, producer organisations and agricultural processors. Group work examines facility structure, collateral, covenants and repayment risks under changing yield and price assumptions. Simulations address monitoring visits, early-warning signals and arrears conversations. Individual application planning helps participants adapt the appraisal and monitoring tools to their own lending portfolio.

Requirements and prerequisites

Participants should understand basic lending terms, including principal, interest, collateral, repayment schedules and financial statements. At least one year of experience in credit, relationship management, microfinance, agriculture projects, cooperative finance or agribusiness is helpful. Participants should be comfortable working with percentages, simple ratios and spreadsheet-style calculations. Prior agricultural production experience is useful but not essential. The course does not require advanced accounting, econometrics, credit certification, programming skills or prior experience with IFRS 9 models.

A typical training day

08:30 – 10:30First session
10:30 – 10:45Refreshment break
10:45 – 12:30Second session
12:30 – 13:30Lunch and networking
13:30 – 15:00Third session
15:00 – 15:15Refreshment break
15:15 – 16:30Workshop and daily review

Live online deliveries follow the same structure in East Africa Time, with shorter screen blocks and longer breaks.

What the fee includes

  • Instruction by a practitioner facilitator
  • Full course workbook and materials
  • Exercise files, templates and case studies
  • Refreshments and lunch on classroom deliveries
  • Certificate of completion
  • Post-course application plan

Frequently asked questions

You should understand basic lending concepts and be comfortable with percentages and simple financial calculations. Experience in credit, agriculture, microfinance, cooperatives or agribusiness is useful, but advanced accounting is not required.

Bring a laptop if possible, as it will help with cash-flow and budgeting work. You may also bring anonymised examples of your institution's appraisal forms, lending products or monitoring reports for personal reference.

It suits credit officers, relationship managers, analysts, microfinance staff and development finance professionals who assess or supervise agricultural lending. It also suits cooperative and agribusiness finance managers responsible for member or supplier credit.

General credit analysis courses focus mainly on standard business financial statements and corporate lending methods. This course addresses seasonal cash flows, farm enterprise budgets, production risks, commodity markets, rural collateral and agricultural value chain finance.

You can use the cash-flow model, appraisal structure, risk-rating checklist and monitoring plan when reviewing new or existing agricultural facilities. The methods support more defensible recommendations, better repayment scheduling and earlier intervention on problem loans.

Each training day runs from 08:30 to 16:30 and provides about 6.5 contact hours. The five days cover ten sequenced modules, balancing technical input with case analysis, calculations, group decisions and application planning.

Questions about this course?

Ask about dates, fees, group bookings or running it for your team. Our training team replies by email.

Ask on WhatsApp info@skillsetdevelopment.com

Related courses in Agriculture & Agribusiness