Business

Ethiopian Agritech Firm Lersha Wins Top Africa Award

AI SUMMARY

Ethiopian agritech platform Lersha has won the overall excellence and agribusiness awards at the 2026 Africa Sustainable Futures Awards in London.

Ethiopian agricultural technology company Lersha won the Judges’ Award for Excellence and the Agribusiness Award at the 2026 Africa Sustainable Futures Awards.
The awards were organised jointly by the Financial Times and the World Bank Group’s Multilateral Investment Guarantee Agency (MIGA).
The competition attracted nearly 600 submissions covering energy, infrastructure, agribusiness, and manufacturing, with 18 projects shortlisted.
Winners were announced on October 23, 2026, following a ceremony in London on October 22 at the conclusion of the Financial Times Africa Summit.
Lersha is an integrated agricultural services platform developed by Ethiopia’s Green Agro Solution PLC, founded in 2018.
The platform operates across Ethiopia, Kenya, and Uganda, connecting smallholder farmers to financing, crop insurance, inputs, mechanisation, and markets.
Lersha combines mobile applications, call centres, and local agricultural agents to serve farmers who lack smartphones or internet connections.
Another Ethiopian-associated initiative, Zerobionic, won the competition's Innovation Showcase category for activities spanning Kenya, Namibia, Ethiopia, and Rwanda.
The awards recognise private sector-led initiatives addressing development challenges through commercially viable approaches, focusing on job creation and economic resilience.
The London awards announcement did not disclose any cash prize or new financing agreement associated with Lersha’s recognition.