The Grameen Credit Agricole Foundation (GCAF), whose head office is in Luxembourg, recently informed MicroCapital that it has disbursed three-year loans to three microfinance institutions in Africa.
Hekima of the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) borrowed USD 530,000 from GCAF. As of 2015, Hekima reports to the US-based nonprofit Microfinance Information Exchange (MIX) total assets of USD 3.6 million, loans of USD 2.3 million outstanding to 10,000 borrowers, and deposits of 890,000 held for 12,000 clients. The MFI’s mission includes “contributing to the economic, social and spiritual lives” of DRC’s people.
The Société de Financement de la Petite Entreprise (SOFIPE) of Burkina Faso borrowed the local-currency equivalent of USD 380,000 from GCAF. It was the first transaction between the institutions. SOFIPE was founded in 2010 with support from the Mauritius-based AfriCap Microfinance Investment Company, Banque Agricole et Commerciale du Burkina (BACB), and Dutch cooperative Oikocredit. As of 2016, SOFIPE reports to MIX total assets of USD 5.5 million, USD 4.6 million in loans outstanding to 13,000 clients, and USD 3 million in deposits held for 38,000 clients.
Agence Communautaire pour le Financement de la Micro Enterprise (ACFIME), whose mission is to fight poverty in Burkina Faso, borrowed local-currency equivalent to USD 290,000 from GCAF under a framework supported by Agence Francaise de Developpement, a unit of the French government. As of 2016, the microbank reports to MIX total assets of USD 2.2 million, USD 1.5 million in loans outstanding to 15,000 clients, and USD 900,000 million in deposits held for 13,000 clients.
GCAF was founded in 2008 by Credit Agricole SA, a French retail bank, and Grameen Trust, a nonprofit microfinance organization affiliated with the Grameen Bank of Bangladesh. GCAF focuses on supporting organizations that prioritize rural development, transparency, consumer protection and serving women. As of December 2017, GCAF had outstanding loans of EUR 62 million (USD 76 million) and experience with 69 partners in 28 countries in Africa and Eurasia.
Sources and Additional Resources
Direct contact with the Grameen Credit Agricole Foundation
MIX profile on Hekima
https://www.themix.org/mixmarket/profiles/hekima
MIX profile on SOFIPE
https://www.themix.org/mixmarket/profiles/sofipe
MIX profile on ACFIME
https://www.themix.org/mixmarket/profiles/acfime
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