news - FMO grants EUR 5 million loan to Fin'ELLE to strengthen support to MSMEs and women active in the Ivory Coast cassava value chain

 The COFINA Group is pleased to announce the new partnership with FMO, which has approved a EUR 5 million investment with Fin'Elle, La Finance pour ELLE. The subsidiary of the COFINA Group dedicated to supporting women entrepreneurs in Côte d'Ivoire and offering adapted and accessible financial services.

This financing from FMO will strengthen Fin'ELLE's position in meso finance and thus continue to facilitate access to credit for many women entrepreneurs and SMEs active in agricultural value chains, with a strong social and environmental impact.

While more than 70% of African women face numerous barriers in terms of access to financial services or simply do not have access to them, Fin'ELLE aims to increase the proportion of eligible women and to increase the volume of loans allocated to them. To date, Fin'ELLE has been able to support more than 5,000 women clients, offering them products tailored to their needs in terms of pricing, insurance and skill building.

"It is with a definite commitment that we have established this partnership. We are pleased to work with FMO to provide financial support to women entrepreneurs in the agricultural sector. Supporting female entrepreneurship through inclusive finance is at the heart of Fin'ELLE's actions. This partnership allows us to strengthen the implementation of our common vision, to participate in the empowerment of women in Côte d'Ivoire", says Mrs. Marema BAO, President of the Board of Directors of Fin'ELLE.

For FMO, MASSIF portfolio manager Jeroen Harteveld confirms: "We are proud that FMO, through its MASSIF fund, supports Fin'Elle in its ambitions to increase access to finance for women entrepreneurs and women-led SMEs in Côte d'Ivoire, as this is strongly aligned with our own mandate. The realization of this latest partnership between the two entities demonstrates that FMO considers Groupe Cofina a preferred regional partner in its goals to increase its presence and impact in Francophone Africa."

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About Fin'ELLE

Created in 2018, Fin'ELLE is a microfinance institution dedicated to the empowerment of women entrepreneurs. With a range of savings products, credit and capacity building programs, Fin'ELLE is committed to promoting in Côte d'Ivoire a pan-African model of inclusive financing for women. Fin 'ELLE now serves more than 10,000 clients and ranks 9th among microfinance institutions in Côte d'Ivoire. Fin'ELLE is a subsidiary of the COFINA Group, the African leader in mesofinance.