In addition to strengthening of the agri credit capacity, Rabo Development continued its
cooperative capacity building projects in Rwanda (tea, rice, coffee and dairy) and Mozambique
(rice). In Tanzania the NMB Foundation trained 600 cooperatives and farmer groups active in
cashew, coffee, sugar cane and tea. In Rwanda a farmer credit scoring model was developed in
a co-project with De Lage Landen and Erasmus University. This has significantly reduced turn
around times and contributes to an improved quality of the farmer loan portfolio.
Next to the activities for its partner banks, Rabo Development continued to work with
cooperatives in the cocoa sector of Ivory Coast in a joint project with ECOM and Rabobank
Foundation. In Ethiopia the Cooperative Bank of Oromia was trained in financing coffee
cooperatives (co-project with Common Fund for Commodities, CABI and Rabobank Foundation).
One of the main obstacles in agri financing in Africa is a lack of collateral. To address this, all the
African partner banks signed guarantee agreements with the Rabobank Foundation related to
cooperative and emerging farmer loans. This has significantly boosted volumes of agri finance
activities whilst keeping the downside risk under control.
Final closure Banco Cooperativo Sicredi and capital injection for Banco Terra
In June 2010 an agreement was reached for a minority stake in Banco Cooperativo Sicredi SA
(Apex) in Brazil. In 2011, the investment got approval from the Central Bank of Brazil and the
President of Brazil and resulted in a final closure at 20 May 2011
In the first half year of 2011, Rabo Development injected additional capital into the Mozambican
bank Banco Terra, the only greenfield operation of Rabo Development. This capital injection is
meant to boost the commercial and financial development of the bank.
In 2011, banking specialists stationed abroad worked the equivalent of approximately 100
man-months. At year-end 2011, Rabo Development had 19 managers and long-term
consultants working abroad.
Sustainability addressed in personal meetings with customers
Providing socially responsible services is one of Rabobank's priorities. Our customers are also
increasingly becoming interested in sustainability issues and responsible banking. At Rabobank
International, our advisers now stress the commercial aspects of sustainability in their meetings
with customers to a greater extent. Rabobank chooses an engagement approach in its dialogue
with customers: we speak with the customer about the opportunities and threats associated
with their operations, and address sustainability issues. This dialogue is often motivated by the
outcome of the customer assessment system, reports in the media or direct contacts. From a
risk perspective, the meetings with customers are meant to gain a better understanding of
how customers approach sustainability issues. But meetings are increasingly also being held to
explore opportunities for helping customers implement sustainability procedures. By acting as
a valuable discussion partner in the area of sustainability, Rabobank International is better
positioned to identify risks and provide quality services.
Value chain policy
As a leading global player in the food and agri market, Rabobank International seeks to
introduce more sustainability into value chains in the food and agri sector. In the year under
review, the value chain policy was further brought to the forefront, for instance through GAIA,
our customer assessment system, which helps Rabobank International be a better discussion
partner for clients when it comes to sustainability. This is how Rabobank International embeds
the implementation of the Food Agribusiness Principles and its value chain policy in the
financing process. Over 85% of all corporate wholesale clients who have received loans are now
being assessed using GAIA. All corporate wholesale clients are expected to have been assessed
at year-end 2012. GAIA is also used to assess rural and retail clients in Australia and Brazil.
38
Annual Report 2011 Rabobank Group
