The African Facility is a technical assistance program set up in 2013 by the Grameen Crédit Agricole Foundation, in partnership with theFrench Development Agency (AFD), to support rural microfinance institutions in sub-Saharan Africa.

RENACA is a Tier 2 microfinance institution established in 2005. Located in Benin, its mission is to significantly strengthen the economic base of vulnerable rural, peri-urban, and urban populations engaged in self-employment activities. It offers individual and group loans to a predominantly female clientele in six regions of Benin. As part of the African Facility program, RENACA received technical assistance, with the support of the firm YAPU Solutions, to strengthen its actions in inclusive green finance.

A look back at the system with Thomas DOVONOU, Head of Credit Services, in charge of Promoting New Products at RENACA.

• How important was this mission for your institution?

This mission consisted of an initial intervention with RENACA-Benin (National Network of Self-Managed Village Savings and Credit Banks of Benin) to develop our green agenda and define our organizational objectives. On the one hand, we wanted to benefit from an introductory awareness session on the concept of inclusive green finance. On the other hand, an institutional assessment was necessary to take stock of our actions in the field of inclusive green finance and to identify and exploit market opportunities.

As RENACA operates primarily in rural areas, one of our priorities was to receive advice on how to expand our agricultural credit product offerings, in terms of scope, productivity, and climate change risk management. The firm also specifically trained us on the concept of Climate-Smart Agriculture.

• How the relationship with the consultant throughout the mission?

YAPU conducted an assessment of RENACA's initial implementation of inclusive green finance, based on a review of our documentation and processes, and by interviewing our teams. The firm worked closely with all of the Network's stakeholders (senior management, operational staff, elected officials, and clients) to define our challenges and structure our priorities in an action plan. This provided us with a framework to strengthen our activities toward a more active and environmentally responsible organization.

We particularly appreciated YAPU's participatory approach, as well as the good preparation of the mission and the quality of the documentation provided.

• What actions did you implement following this mission?

We first completed a Green Index and disseminated the results within the Network. This way, the teams were informed of our current situation in terms of the level of implementation of inclusive green finance and became aware of our areas for improvement and possible opportunities.

Then, the results of the mission were used to improve the inclusive green finance system through the implementation of certain recommendations.

For example, we have developed a list of activities excluded from funding because they are harmful to the environment and customer well-being (charcoal production, extraction activities leading to the pollution of water bodies, etc.). This list has also been supplemented with a list of behaviors for sustainable change expected from our customers.

We have also developed our range of agricultural financial products through the implementation of an appropriate system in terms of strategy, actor profile (operational agents and pool agricultural finance specialists), procedures and policies, tools, financial resources, partnerships, etc.

Finally, RENACA developed an environmental and social policy, which was adopted by its Board of Directors. The next step will be to disseminate it to network stakeholders (operational agents, customers, elected officials, etc.).

Ultimately, thanks to YAPU's involvement, we gained a better understanding of the opportunities and challenges associated with inclusive green financing. This mission therefore enabled a real awareness-raising among the Network's teams, from senior management to field agents.

 

The 5th edition of the African Microfinance Week (AMW), dedicated to the development of financial inclusion in Africa, will take place from October 18 to 22, 2021 in Kigali, Rwanda, on the theme of resilience.

Organized by ADA Microfinance (Support for Autonomous Development) In Luxembourg, the main objective of SAM 2021 is to bring together the thoughts and commitments of the different categories of actors in the African inclusive finance sector. Conferences and training sessions are organized throughout the week to discuss strategies and actions to be taken to, on the one hand, strengthen the resilience capacities of financial services operators and beneficiary populations, and on the other hand, accelerate their progress towards the sustainable development goals.

The SAM Conference: “We are not born resilient, we become it: strengthening inclusive finance to overcome crises”

This conference will be held over two days and will be structured into plenary sessions.

It is in this context that Philippe Guichandut, Director of Inclusive Finance Development at the Grameen Crédit Agricole Foundation, will speak during two sessions on "MFIs and the Covid-19 crisis in Africa: Survey results and lessons learned" as well as "Financing the inclusive finance sector in times of crisis: what role for investors and donors in strengthening the resilience of the sector?". On this occasion, Philippe Guichandut will share the experience of the Grameen Crédit Agricole Foundation during the Covid-19 crisis and the results of the surveys carried out, in partnership with Inpulse And ADA, with their partner microfinance institutions.

Violette Cubier, technical assistance program manager at the Foundation, will speak at an experience-sharing session on financial innovations that promote the resilience of refugee populations.

Training and workshops

SAM 2021 also offers around twenty training courses on different themes: agricultural finance, digital finance, inclusive insurance, social performance, etc.

At the initiative of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees and the Grameen Crédit Agricole Foundation, a training session is being organized on the theme of financial inclusion for refugees and host communities.

Training on microinsurance will also be provided by the Grameen Crédit Agricole Foundation, the International Labour Organization and the Micro Insurance Network.

Finally, Sébastien Simonot, Investment Officer at the Foundation, will speak at the workshop “Green and Inclusive Finance: Understanding and Addressing Client Vulnerabilities.” The training will provide participants with an overview of client needs assessment frameworks, data collection tools, and strategies for integrating inclusive green finance programs into their organizations.

The opportunity to meet its partners

On the occasion of SAM 2021, the Foundation will meet with its African partners, notably those involved in the African Facility's technical assistance program, developed since 2013 in partnership with the French Development Agency (AFD) and which will end on December 31 of this year. Meetings will be organized in advance of SAM 2021 and will allow all parties involved to take stock of this mechanism, which has helped strengthen some twenty microfinance institutions in sub-Saharan Africa, the Foundation's priority intervention area.

Discover the Grameen Crédit Agricole Foundation's technical assistance programs here.

The African Facility is a mechanism set up in 2013 by the Grameen Crédit Agricole Foundation, in partnership with theFrench Development Agency (AFD), to support rural microfinance institutions in sub-Saharan Africa.

This system, which ends at the end of 2021, will have enabled 326 technical assistance missions to be carried out with 26 microfinance institutions for a total amount of €3.52 million in subsidies.

A look back at the program with an interview with Gaston Assagwe, Director General of theACFIME.

ACFIME (Community Agency for Micro-Enterprise Financing) is a Tier 3 microfinance institution (credit portfolio < 10 million USD) based in Burkina Faso. As of the end of December 2020, the institution served 21,504 clients with an outstanding loan of €1.9 million. It offers credit and savings products to a primarily female clientele (90%) and living primarily in rural areas (90%).

As part of the African Facility technical assistance program, consultant Pierre Houssou supported the institution in developing a risk map adapted to its challenges and its development strategy.

Why was developing a risk map important for ACFIME?

A microfinance institution founded in 2007, ACFIME has expanded its activities nationally with three branches and seven service points. From its inception, it established an internal audit department to ensure control of the institution's operations and anticipate risks. As part of the African Facility, the institution was assisted by consultant Pierre Houssou in developing a risk map. Today, periodic monitoring of the map allows for monitoring the evolution of each risk and rapid action to be taken to correct them.

What did you expect from the consultant? Did the results meet your expectations?

How to identify a risk, how to analyze it, how to measure its importance in a sustainable and viable way for the institution? Thanks to this mission, the internal audit department was first trained on the concept of risks and how to develop a risk mitigation plan. Since risks can be found in every position and every procedure or process, everyone's collaboration was essential to achieve the mission's second objective: the development of a risk map. The participatory approach used by Pierre Houssou (individual questions and answers, focus groups, votes, plenary sessions, etc.) allowed each ACFIME member to be an active participant in this major work of reflection and analysis.

 What could have been the avenues for improving this mission?

The duration of the mission could undoubtedly have been extended. But the outcome was very positive, and at the end of the mission, a risk management committee was established within ACFIME to independently update the risk mapping. We now have a precise risk mapping system tailored to financial, operational, and strategic risks, as well as effective management tools. The annual internal audit plan is also based on this risk mapping to help ACFIME evolve.

How did this mapping help you better manage risks during the Covid-19 crisis?

Since the implementation of this mapping, the identified risks have been the subject of a mitigation plan, the implementation of which has helped prevent and reduce existing risks. In the context of the Covid-19 crisis, the mapping helped ACFIME quickly turn to local financial partners, such as the Burkinabe government, to cope with the drying up of international funding, due to travel restrictions and health restrictions on a global scale.

 

Launched by the Grameen Crédit Agricole Foundation and Crédit Agricole SA in 2018, Solidarity Bankers is a skills-based volunteer program open to all Crédit Agricole Group employees in support of microfinance institutions or impact businesses supported by the Foundation.

Discover the opinion piece by Jean Baptiste Bounes, Solidarity Banker at SODICA, who carried out a remote mission between 2020 and 2021 in support of Phare Performing Social Enterprise (PPSE).

Fighting poverty through entrepreneurship

The Grameen Crédit Agricole Foundation, and more specifically the Solidarity Bankers program, were introduced to me by Eric Campos during a CACIF corporate plenary session in December 2019. I was immediately drawn to the Foundation's mission to combat poverty by promoting socially impactful entrepreneurship and inclusive finance in developing countries. I then contacted the Foundation to receive the various Solidarity Bankers offers and apply for those that matched my motivations and skills.

After several interviews conducted by the Foundation team, I was selected to advise PPSE in Cambodia on its fundraising strategy.

The proposed mission met my expectations in every way: to be able to put my skills to good use on a project with a strong social impact in a difficult context linked to Covid-19; to discover a new culture and to get out of my professional comfort zone.

The challenge of this mission was to be able to successfully collaborate remotely over a long period while maintaining intensity in the fundraising process.

A remote mission during a pandemic

Due to restrictions related to the health context, I participated through my intervention with PPSE in the Foundation's first remote Solidarity Bankers mission.

Unlike field missions, which typically take place over two consecutive weeks, my mission was carried out one day per week over 15 weeks. This schedule was better suited to a fundraising operation, allowing me to be present alongside the manager and shareholders for the long term.

Real educational work was carried out during the first discussions to ensure that the level of understanding of the different issues was the same for each participant.

Additionally, weekly meetings were organized to maintain close collaboration despite the distance. Defining the various stages of the process in advance also facilitated its smooth execution. This planning allowed the Foundation to consider new remote missions with confidence.

Skills volunteering: an experience to be repeated

This experience was very enriching, both on a human and professional level.

First of all, the real autonomy I was given allowed me to ask myself the right questions, assert myself, and gain the confidence to successfully complete my daily tasks. This experience undoubtedly marked a turning point in my professional career.

I also had the chance to work alongside a company with a strong social impact and Impact Investing funds, which was really important to me as I find this world exciting and promising.

This mission also brought me a lot on a human level. I discovered a very different culture and met inspiring and enriching people.

I would particularly like to thank Dara Huot, CEO of PPSE, for her extreme generosity, kindness, and trust. The investment in terms of time and workload is certainly significant, but if I had to do it all over again, I would do it again without hesitation.