Out-grower schemes are contractual arrangements between investors and farmers that offer mutual benefits by outlining conditions for agricultural production and marketing. In Sub-Saharan Africa, these schemes are seen as a promising strategy to integrate farmers into agriculture value chains, aiming to reduce poverty and hunger sustainably. The Ghana Commercial Agriculture Project (GCAP) facilitates land acquisition for commercial farmers who engage out-growers or provides credit and marketing support to smallholder farmers. Participating in these schemes helps farmers overcome credit constraints and improve credit repayment, resulting in a win-win situation. However, accessing formal credit sources remains challenging for farmers due to factors like lack of collateral, formal employment, low savings, and stringent loan application procedures. Informal credit sources charge high interest rates, further affecting farmers' financial capacity.

To enhance farmers' access to credit, the nucleus farmer-out grower model is employed, where investors act as intermediaries or guarantors and provide contractual agreements as collateral. Financial institutions often rely on scheme investors for loan disbursement, monitoring, and recovery. Out-grower schemes also promote responsible credit utilization by offering technical services and market opportunities to farmers.