Local Links not only offers Software-as-a-Service (SaaS) linking industry players to saving groups, but we also get our hands dirty by going to the ground to avail smallholder farmers, vendors and traders the digital tools they need to grow their way out of poverty. We invest in a House-of-Agents model that promotes last mile distribution structures for socially responsible products and services.

How We Do It

The LastMile® Platform is accessible in web, app & USSD portals to cater for a variety of industry players and connections.

Who do we serve?

Farmers & Rural communities

Using a basic feature (button) phone, farmers and saving groups can dial a USSD code (*217*229#) that allows them to:

  • Update their planting records for a season (crop, acreage, inputs, season)
  • Order and pay for seed, fertilizer, pesticide or tractor services for their garden
  • Post their Harvest in kgs and attract potential buyers
  • Save and borrow digitally in their savings group

Youth Agents (Last Mile structure)

Recruited from local communities youth agents are trained and mentored on how to provide a bundle of services to savings groups that already know and trust them. Using the Lastmile android app on a smartphone, they:

  • Introduce the digital application to the farmer groups.
  • Train and digitize the saving groups  by profiling the individual members.
  • Train the group’s key contact person or lead farmer to digitally assign roles to the elected Chairperson, Treasurer and Secretary.
  • Assist group members learn how to use the USSD version to manage their gardens and finances.
  • Track and ensure timely delivery of ordered inputs by group members from suppliers.
  • Aggregate farmer group produce and post collective price in readiness for off-taking.
  • Serve as a trainer to the saving group in areas of finance, proper crop care & animal husbandry, health & nutrition etc.

Savings Groups (VSLA’s)

All types of savings groups (not only those comprised of farmers) will benefit from the Lastmile platform. Benefits include:

  • Transparency between group members and official as all names and transactions are immediately accessible to be viewed by all members.
  • Automatic generation of printable revenue and loan records for each member that can be presented to financial institutions for consideration
  • Aggregation of group production activities and direct linkage to the market

Buyer (off-taker) & Supplier organizations

By using the lastmile Web portal, companies and organizations can be able to tap into previously fragmented rural markets to either push, pull or promote products and services. Advantages include:

  • Buyer organization have the advantage of produce traceability down to the respective farmer group and members where a particular crop originated.
  • By taming the “middleman”, companies can buy directly from producer organizations contributing to better prices in the sector.
  • Financial services are extended to previously under-served markets.

Areas of Service

We are present in Lango, Acholi and Bunyoro regions, where we work with 2,650 savings groups and have over 50,000 users.