Both papers, in the open

Both white papers were published on 22 July 2026 and are available in the white papers library.

The session ended on the question the series could not close: at the $5m–$20m project size, preparation capital still has no natural owner. That remains the most useful unsolved problem we know of in this market, and it is where our own origination work is now concentrated.

We closed the series on the day both white papers were published, and used the hour to look back at the argument as a whole.

The Missing Middle argues that African agricultural projects fail before financing, for want of a small and identifiable set of documents. Securitising East African Agricultural Trade argues that the assets which do reach maturity are excluded from institutional portfolios by packaging rather than risk. Together they describe the same gap from either end.

We were also honest about the open questions — chiefly who funds preparation at the $5m–$20m scale, which neither paper solves.

• The two papers side by side
• What changed between draft and publication
• What we got wrong earlier in the series
• The questions still open
• Where the series goes next
• Open discussion