Priority Agricultural Value Chains: rice, maize, wheat , fish, dairy milk, soyabean, poultry, horticulture (fruits and vegetables), cowpea, cocoa, cashew, cassava, ginger, sesame, oil palm, yam, cotton and beef.
Business Plan Development
Introduction
A business plan allows you to create a business operation on paper and manipulate and evaluate scenarios without the risk of investing a lot of time and money. Dry run planning reduces the possibility of the venture failing, by identifying your proposals, strengths and weaknesses, and developing a plan of action to cope with them.
Financial institutions, business partners, and investors will all require that you have a proper business plan to prove your ideas are viable and that you have adequate knowledge of your chosen area of business. Whether you are starting a new business, buying an existing one, or expanding your present operation, a business plan will help you prepare for the unexpected and help set the goals for your future business success.
Developing an agri-business will require the following:
a. General knowledge of the agriculture industry.
b. Recognition of your business opportunity or advantage.
c. A market for your product and a thorough understanding of that market.
d. Technical knowledge of crop production practices and/or livestock production.
e. Financial resources to develop your operation.
f. The necessary business management skills.
The information sources for developing business plan
To prepare a plan, you need to research your proposed business. The following sources of information will be helpful in developing your plan:
i. Interviews With Other Producers
ii. Extension Specialists
iii. Personal Work Experience
iv. Industry Consultants
v. Library Research
vi. Trade Suppliers
vii. Trade Magazines and Journals
viii. Demographic Studies
ix. Industry Associations
x. Newspaper Articles, etc.
Note: a plan must be continually adjusted to the changing conditions of your business. If something is not working, adapt it until it works.
Business Plan definition
A business plan is an effective management tool that outlines how you intend to run your business. As a management tool, a business plan will help you determine the goals you need to achieve in order to operate your business successfully. Normally, a business plan is made up of the following sections:
I. Business / Industry Overview
II. Production Plan
III. Market Plan
IV. Financial Plan
V. Human Resources Plan