B-ACT Technical Training:

Highlights from the Agri-PDB Platform Sessions

On 18 and 19 June 2025, the Agri-PDB Platform and Biovision Foundation held two technical training sessions—one in English and one in French—on the Business Agroecology Criteria Tool (B-ACT). The sessions brought together 12 staff members from six public development banks (PDBs) to explore the tool’s purpose, its agroecological foundation, and how to use it in their lending and ESG processes. The training included practical demonstrations and opportunities for peer exchange.
The English session included participants from FINAGRO Colombia, Land Bank South Africa, and ADBC China (7 staff), while the French session welcomed teams from BNDA Mali, LBA Senegal, and CAM Maroc (5 staff).

Key Insights and Reflections

• Embedding Agroecology into Credit Appraisal : PDBs learned how the B-ACT – a tool for assessing agricultural value chain businesses – measures an enterprise’ alignment with the 13 Principles of Agroecology and its potential to positively impact the local food system. As participants noted “We’re not only interested in financial returns,” noted participants, “but also in how loans contribute to ecological transitions and community well-being.”
• From Data Entry to Decision-Making : The tool guides users to collect and provide information related to an enterprise in a series of sheets. This includes general business information and a screening for “Red Lines” – to check whether business practices run counter to the Principles of Agroecology. The main section of the tool consists of “Principle Questions”, which assess a business’ practices, processes, strategy and internal policies. Quantitative results of the assessment are visually presented in a tree diagram and bar charts in the Entrepreneur Scorecard sheet. These results can be uploaded and turned into a chart on Biovision’s Infopool webpage. The B-ACT provides suggestions for improvements and also contains a glossary, helping banks turn data and results into strategic insights.
• Scores as Continuous Roadmaps : Instead of using pass/fail evaluations, B-ACT’s percentage scores highlight both strengths and areas for improvement. Trainers emphasized that the “B-ACT encourages continuous progress—not rigid cut-offs”. A consultant to IFAD that supports IFAD’s work with the Agri-PDBs platform suggested that they might design a Bronze–Silver–Gold tiered system to think about a way for how the tool could be used by PDBs to compare performance across their portfolios. Biovision plans to add a rubric to the tool in an upcoming update to facilitate interpretation of quantitative scores.
• Customization for Local Relevance: The tool is designed so that it can be adapted to best serve the purposes of the user. PDBs are welcome to reach out to Biovision for technical support with customizing the tool so it best meets their business assessment needs.

Challenges in Adapting the Tool

•  Banks should be aware that upfront costs for the adoption of agroecological practices translate into future resilience and cost savings, especially through reduced input costs, in addition to shorter-term social and environmental impacts.
• Successful adoption of the B-ACT in a PDB’s broader business analysis and investment decision-making process depends on training staff to effectively administer the tool, ensuring a standardized application of the tool and updating internal procedures where necessary.
• Biovision stands ready to provide continuous support to interested PDBs — through workshops, one-on-one coaching, and peer-learning forums.

Next Steps

• Launch v3.0 (Q4 2025): Introduce smart filters based on value-chain role (cuts down on time and improves accuracy); revisions to the Principle Questions based on user feedback; overall streamlining of the tool
• Build Capacity: Roll out tailored onboarding workshops and one-on-one coaching, complemented by troubleshooting clinics.
• Foster Peer Learning: Host quarterly check-ins—across English, French, and Spanish—to share pilot results, co-design enhancements, and deepen regional collaboration.

Key Questions & Answers

How to interpret a mid-range score (e.g. 73%)?
See it as a progress baseline—focus on the lowest-scoring principles, apply improvement suggestions, and track changes; (The PDBs coalition facilitators may consider developing a Bronze–Silver–Gold tiers add-on to the existing scoring to add peer context.
Can B-ACT fit diverse PDBs models?
Yes, PDBs can seek technical support from Biovision for tool customization so it is adapted to the PDBs’ respective PDB’s loan cycles and risk policies. Question sets and their illustrations should not require any substantial adaptation; minor changes can be made to ensure regional context is respected. In all cases, it is best to work with Biovision to make changes.
What support is available?
Biovision offers onboarding workshops, one-on-one coaching, troubleshooting clinics, and quarterly peer-learning check-ins.

Final Takeaway

B-ACT gives Public Development Banks (PDBs) a unique and practical tool to mainstream agroecological principles in their financing decisions. The B-ACT helps PDBs move toward more resilient, inclusive, and nature-positive rural finance.