In Guinea, a brewery plan became a 1,000-hectare fruit farm employing 300

In Tanene, a rural community 50 kilometres from Guinea's capital Conakry, a farm called BMI Farms was cultivating more than 1,000 hectares of fruit and employing nearly 300 people from 27 surrounding villages, though it began as a plan for a beer factory. Its story was told in a World Bank feature published on 13 January 2026. The report said agriculture employs 52% of Guinea's workforce, yet formal farming is negligible.

Bassam Merhi, a local entrepreneur and CEO of BMI Farms, never expected this calling. "If someone had told me that I will be investing in agriculture, I would have said, you're crazy," he said, laughing as he looked over rows of fruit trees fed by a modern irrigation system.

Five years before the report, Merhi planned to invest in a beer factory. When he approached the International Finance Corporation (IFC), the World Bank Group's private-sector arm, for financing, he learned the project would qualify only if it were linked to agriculture. He switched from brewing to farming.

It was not an easy start. "The journey was not easy. We lost two years trying to find the right solution," Merhi recalled. "Early crops failed due to irrigation challenges and recurring water shortages." In a video released with the report, he said a first passion-fruit crop failed for lack of water.

IFC's Local Champions Initiative then identified BMI Farms as a high-potential local business and connected it to the Guinea Commercial Agriculture Development Project (PDACG), financed by the International Development Association (IDA). Approved on 22 September 2020 with $100 million, the project aims to increase the number of farmers and rural households benefiting from commercial agriculture value chains. For BMI Farms it provided technical assistance and expert advice on fruit selection, soil management, irrigation design and processing equipment.

The farm uses precision agriculture techniques. Two dams were built and circular pivot irrigation installed to use water efficiently and allow year-round cultivation. In the video Merhi said the farm had planted oranges, avocado, banana, papaya and passion fruit, and that onions had been successful. Once yields were stable, the company added a processing plant for juice concentrates and soft drinks.

BMI Farms drilled more than 60 boreholes for clean water and extended electricity to schools and nearby communities. "I feel really proud working here," said Lucie Maomie, who took her first job at the farm as an administrative assistant after university. Merhi put his aim this way: "Guinea is rich in land, water, and talent. Our goal is to help solve food insecurity, create jobs, and empower young farmers."

The joint IDA and IFC initiative brings smallholders into value chains through matching grants. In Guinea, IFC reviewed 20 agribusinesses for potential investment, while IDA provided $6.5 million in grants for their business plans and attracted $36 million in additional private capital. Matching grants and market infrastructure support created more than 14,800 jobs along agricultural value chains, including 5,000 for women; more than 49,500 farmers and rural households gained new commercial opportunities.

IFC advisory services and IDA support for the third Guinea Investment Forum in 2024 helped agribusinesses secure $14.1 million in local funding. Oliano Diana Kouyate, Director General of the investment promotion agency APIP, said the support had carried three projects, in cassava processing, food production and tarpaulin manufacturing, from concept to fully funded, investment-ready businesses.

Amadou Daff Balde, Director of the export promotion agency AGUIPEX, said Guinea's fonio exports rose from 57 tons in 2020 to 600 tons in 2024, helped by the first international fonio forum and the creation of a regional network. Fonio is a small-grained West African cereal and a vital food in rural areas, especially in Guinea's Fouta Djallon highlands; Guinea accounted for more than 75% of world fonio production in 2019.

The World Bank Group also updated digital tools at APIP and AGUIPEX. Guinea is one of 23 countries in the AgriConnect Compacts, and the report said the agricultural goals of its Simandou 2040 programme left it well placed to add value in farming.

Photo: Abdoulrahamane 99MDS Barry / Wikimedia Commons (CC BY-SA 4.0)

Sources: World Bank, World Bank project data (Guinea Commercial Agriculture Development Project, P164184), Wikipedia (Fonio)