Investment in agricultural land and plantation projects in Sierra Leone
There exists a great imbalance between the demand and supply in food grains globally, and this resulted in the rise in the price of food grains by the end of 2008. Capital Alternatives provides investment opportunities in agricultural land in Sierra Leone in western Africa in rice farming and palm oil plantation projects, aiming to generate a food grain supply to meet local demand and also fulfil the global demand.
The investment in agricultural fields offered by Capital Alternatives are fully managed and insured. It is a great opportunity to make alternative investments in agricultural land to earn long term returns. The projects offer returns in the range of 50% to 120% in a year. The projects are managed by the local management firm, and it gives safe and secure returns. These projects have a flexible exit mechanism and the land offered is under the regulation of government’s code of conduct for land acquisition.
The deals are fully transparent and the local landowners are aware of the negotiations. The involved parties are informed before the negotiation, and the land deals are fully protected. Media and civil society are actively involved in project related activities, which ensures the deals are backed by local community and government leaders. The land rights are offered on a long term lease to the investors. The investors get the Title deed in their name and the project is based on the shared profit basis , where the investors will have to pay the set up cost , which is $3,000 per acre . There are no ongoing or hidden fees.
High returns - The investors get 40% of the net profits from the rice crop harvests.
Social benefit - A small percentage of the profits are invested towards assisting the local population through health, education and food. It contributes to economic growth and social stability of the region. It also provides employment opportunities to the local population and promotes the development in the living standard of the region.
Environmental benefit – The agricultural investments help in soil conservation. It is fully protected against practices such as increases in greenhouse gas emission and diversion of water through environmental uses.
Fully monitored - The projects are fully monitored for environmental impact assessment, and it guards against any form of loss of biodiversity or depletion of soil. The project aims to improve food production to meet the local demand for food grains.
Increasing food grain production- Rice is the staple food of the region and hence, the project is based on prime rice farm lands. The scheme promotes sustainable human development.
Similarly, Capital Alternatives palm oil plantation project in Sub Saharan Africa provides the opportunity to earn returns of up to 120% in a year. In the last few years the region attracted huge investments from global investors because the land is highly arable and provides escalating returns through land accreditation and annual harvests. The local community is also benefiting from the inflow of capital, which contributes to infrastructure development and improves the lifestyle of people in the region.
—Stewart Atwell