Two 
Luxembourg-based NGOs, ADA Microfinance and Grameen Crédit Agricole Foundation, along with Belgium-based Inpulse Investment Manager will present their analysis of the responses to five surveys they have conducted since 2020 regarding how the COVID-19 pandemic is affecting microfinance institutions (MFIs). This event, part of the Midi de la Microfinance series, will offer “lessons learned” from the surveys, with the goal of helping MFIs improve the ways they prepare for and react to crises. Among the speakers will be Jacques Afetor, Director of Togo-based
Category: Africa
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: IFC Commits $1b to MSMEs in Africa Recovering from Pandemic Recession via Risk Sharing, Mezzanine Financing
The 
International Finance Corporation, a member of the World Bank Group, recently committed USD 1 billion to finance micro-, small and medium-sized enterprises (MSMEs) through risk sharing and mezzanine financing in collaboration with public and private financial institutions. The loan will target MSMEs in sectors considered more likely to create jobs, given the
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: IDH Farmfit Fund Acquires Equity Stake in LendXS, Provider of Fintech for Microfinance Institutions Serving Smallholder Farmers
The IDH Farmfit Fund, which is facilitated by the Sustainable Trade Initiative, a Netherlands-based NGO known by its Dutch acronym IDH, recently acquired a 21-percent stake in LendXS, a Netherlands-based financial technology (fintech) platform for rural financial institutions. The pricing of the transaction remains
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Oikocredit Opens $1.8m Credit Line for Cavica, Cashew Cooperative in Côte d’Ivoire
Netherlands-based cooperative Oikocredit recently agreed to loan up to EUR 1.5 million (USD 1.83 million) to support Côte d’Ivoire-based Coopérative avec Conseil d’Administration de Vivriers et de Cajou (Cavica) in the procurement, sale, storage and transport of cashews. Cavica Board Chair El Hadj Konate Arouna stated,
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Salaam African Bank (SAB) of Djibouti Acquires Uwezo Microfinance Bank of Kenya
Salaam African Bank (SAB) of Djibouti recently acquired Kenya-based Uwezo Microfinance Bank for an undisclosed price. Licensed by the Central Bank of Kenya (CBK) in 2010, Uwezo is a
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Off-Grid Market Development Fund Granting Up to $28m to Solar Distribution Firms in Madagascar, Depending on Results Toward Goals
The Off-Grid Market Development Fund (OMDF), an initiative of the Malagasy government, recently signed contracts with 12 solar companies in Madagascar, whereby the firms are receiving a total of USD 2.5 million upfront. The firms can obtain an additional total of USD 25.5 million if they reach their distribution goals, which entail the delivery of “900,000 quality solar lanterns and market-entry solar home systems by June 2024.”
OMDF has a total volume of
MICROFINANCE PAPER WRAP-UP: “The Future of Government-to-Person (G2P) Payments: Three Years of Learning About G2P Choice in Zambia;” by Silvia Baur-Yazbeck et al; Published by CGAP, World Bank Group
The authors of this paper evaluated the methods that Zambia’s Ministry of Community Development and Social Services (MCDSS) uses to issue government-to-person (G2P) payments via its Supporting Women’s Lives (SWL) and Girls Education and Women’s Empowerment and Livelihoods (GEWEL) projects. Launched in
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Ascent Rift Valley Fund II Raises $100m from Public, Private Investors for SMEs in East Africa
Kenya-based private equity firm Ascent Capital Africa recently secured USD 100 million at the first rolling close of its Ascent Rift Valley Fund II (ARVF II), surpassing the firm’s initial goal of USD 80 million. The funds will be invested in small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) in East Africa, targeting
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Lami of Kenya Raises $1.8m in Equity for Digital Insurance (Insurtech) in Africa
Kenya-based insurance technology (insurtech) firm Lami Technologies recently raised USD 1.8 million in a seed investment round led by Accion Venture Lab, a unit of US-based NGO Accion. Lami provides a digital platform through which firms offer instant quotations and the subsequent distribution of
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Tugende Expands Leasing Products to Finance Boat Engines for Fishing in Uganda
Tugende, a technology-driven, lease-to-own firm, recently expanded its product portfolio to finance boat engines for informal workers in the fishing industry in Uganda. The company provides “financing for income-generating assets,” such as motorcycle taxis; associated resources, such as insurance and training; and digital profiles demonstrating
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Government of Madagascar, IFC, Local Insurers Partner on Agricultural Insurance, Seeking to Lower Risk of Lending to Farmers
The International Finance Corporation (IFC), a member of the World Bank Group, recently announced a partnership with the government of Madagascar to boost farmers’ access to insurance that protects their crops from climate-related disasters. The project will engage Malagasy insurance companies to create
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Incofin Assists SOPROCOPIV Coffee Cooperative with Fairtrade Certification, COVID-19 Adjustment in Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC)
Incofin, an investment management firm based in Belgium, recently launched a technical assistance project for Solidarité pour la Production et la Commercialisation des Produits Industriels et Vivriers (SOPROCOPIV), a coffee cooperative in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC). The goal is to help SOPROCOPIV become certified by Germany’s Fairtrade International by
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Baobab+ Raises $5m in Equity, Debt to Expand Pay-as-you-go Solar, Tablets in Cote d’Ivoire, Senegal
The French technology company Baobab+ recently raised EUR 2 million (USD 2.4 million) in equity from the Facility for Energy Inclusion Off-Grid Energy Access Fund (FEI-OGEF), an initiative of the African Development Bank (AfDB). Baobab+ also secured a loan of the same amount from the Energy Entrepreneurs Growth Fund (EEGF), which is
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Applications for $60k Arab Financial Inclusion Innovation Prize (AFIIP) Open Through June 25, 2021
The organizers of the Arab Financial Inclusion Innovative Prize (AFIIP) are now accepting applications from financial services practitioners to compete for an award of USD 60,000 plus technical assistance in implementing their ideas. In past years, AFIIP has offered a financial inclusion prize for innovation in Arab nations that improves financial services catering to poor people as well as
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: DFC Agrees to Loan $100m to WaterEquity Global Access Fund to Boost Access to Clean Drinking Water, Sanitation
The government-backed US International Development Finance Corporation (DFC) recently agreed to loan USD 100 million to the WaterEquity Global Access Fund and disbursed the first tranche of USD 25 million. US-based investment manager WaterEquity launched the Global Access Fund with the goal of raising USD 150 million to “empower at least 5 million people to access improved water and sanitation across Asia, Latin America and Africa.” The terms of the loan from DFC
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: FINCA Expands Microfinance Fintech in Uganda, Azerbaijan, Kyrgyzstan
FINCA Impact Finance, a US-based network of financial institutions, recently carried out several campaigns catering to low-income people through its affiliates in Africa and Asia.
FINCA Uganda launched a “Digital is Here” campaign in partnership with Centenary Bank, a commercial institution serving 1.8 million customers
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Numida of Uganda Raises $2.3m in Equity to Scale Digital Lending in Partnership with MFS Africa
Numida, a financial technology (fintech) firm in Uganda, recently raised USD 2.3 million in seed funding from a group of investors led by South Africa’s Mobile Financial Solutions (MFS) Africa, whose infrastructure Numida plans to use to expand outside of Uganda and launch unspecified additional digital financial products. The other investors were the US-based
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: ECCAS, UNCDF Pursue Better Digital Remittances To, Within Central Africa
The 11-member Economic Community of Central African States (ECCAS) and the UN Capital Development Fund (UNCDF) recently entered a two-year agreement through which they aim to expand “affordable and convenient access to digital remittances” for migrants transferring money to family members in their home countries. Priti Sinha, the Executive Secretary of UNCDF said,