Dakar, November 23, 2020 – WIC Capital (“the Fund”) and the Dutch entrepreneurial development bank, FMO, are pleased to announce their partnership to support the participation of women in the economic growth of the West African region.
WIC CAPITAL will invest up to CFAF 8 billion (ca EUR 12 million) in women-led early-stage companies, with a strong potential for growth and impact, in Senegal and Côte d’Ivoire. The capital injection goes hand in hand with strong technical assistance to equip these SMEs with the tools necessary for effective and sustainable growth. This support is provided by the WIC Académie, a dedicated technical assistance facility set up by the Women’s Investment Club (WIC) in 2020. WIC CAPITAL and WIC Académie will both receive a grant from FMO, through its MASSIF fund.
FMO, is thus stepping up its support to financial institutions in Francophone Africa to promote financial inclusion, particularly through support to women led businesses.
Bas Rekvelt, manager of the Financial Institutions team Africa at FMO, commented: “We are delighted to start this partnership with WIC Capital and WIC Académie to promote women’s participation in economic growth in the West African region. We were particularly enticed by WIC Capital’s innovative approach of coupling adapted financial instruments with strong technical assistance, to better address the needs of female entrepreneurs who are still underserved by financial markets. This is in line with FMO’s DNA and we hope that our contribution will enable WIC Capital to expand its impact in Senegal and in the sub-region”.
Read also: Women In Business: Adekemi Adeniyan
Evelyne Dioh, Executive Director of WIC Capital, further commented: “We are delighted to partner with FMO, which is one the DFIs that best implements its commitment to strengthen MSMEs across Africa, with a focus on women-led MSMEs. This show of confidence strengthens our belief in our strategy of intentionally targeting women entrepreneurs and strengthening them financially and technically for a more effective development of the continent. We hope that this partnership, which completes the Fund’s first-loss tranche, will enable us to accelerate our fundraising and investments, in order to make the case for gender lens investing. We look forward to the next steps of our collaboration. »
About WIC Capital (www.wic-capital.net )
WIC Capital is the first investment mechanism to provide appropriate financing and support to women-owned micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs) in Senegal and West Africa. The Fund was set up by the Women’s Investment Club Senegal www.wicsenegal.com in 2019, with the vision and ambition to give women entrepreneurs access to modern financing instruments for inclusive development.
Contact: Ms. Evelyne Dioh, Executive Director [email protected]
Phone: +221 77 740 25 42 Address: Immeuble le Thiargane 8th floor, Mermoz Place OMVS
Twitter : WIC Senegal LinkedIn: WIC Capital Youtube: WIC Capital
About WIC Académie (https://wic-capital.net/wic-Académie/ )
WIC Académie is an initiative of the Women’s Investment Club that aims to provide women-led SMEs with the tools necessary to achieve significant and sustainable growth.
WIC Académie works with a large group of women-led companies, including WIC Capital’s pipeline and portfolio companies.
WIC Académie capitalizes on the expertise of WIC members, technical partnerships with local and international organizations, and external expertise to provide high-caliber coaching and technical assistance to African women entrepreneurs.
About FMO (www.fmo.nl)
FMO is the Dutch entrepreneurial development bank that promotes sustainable growth of the private sector in developing countries by investing in ambitious projects. FMO believes that a strong private sector is the key to economic and social development and has a proven track record of 50 years in empowering people to use their skills and improve their quality of life. FMO focuses on three sectors that have a strong impact on development: financial institutions, energy and agribusiness, and food and water. With a portfolio of over €9.7 billion, FMO is one of the world’s largest bilateral private sector development banks, covering more than 85 countries.
