Discover SIDI’s 2021 activity report

The 2021 Activity Report is online!

The year 2021 was still very much marked by the effects of the Covid19 pandemic, but let us salute everyone’s commitment, which enabled SIDI to pursue its mission as a solidarity investor serving the financial and economic inclusion of populations excluded from conventional financial systems.

Discover the performances and achievements of SIDI and its partner organizations, all committed to ecological and social transition. Aware of the significant financing and support needs that remain, SIDI is fully mobilized to respond to the ever-increasing challenges facing the most vulnerable populations.

Let’s stick to our course and our ambition to promote socially responsible finance!

 

 

 

 

[CP] EIB lends €5 million to FEFISOL II fund

[CP] European Investment Bank lends €5 million to FEFISOL II to finance Africa’s agricultural sector

 

Building on the success of FEFISOL, the first impact fund dedicated to the rural world in Africa, which closed in 2021, its two founders, SIDI and Alterfin, have been actively working on the creation of a new fund: FEFISOL II, created at the end of 2021.

Today, the EIB is announcing its entry into the capital of FEFISOL II for an amount of 5 million euros! This renewed commitment will enable the Fund to pursue and deepen its social mission.

FEFISOL 1 has had a considerable impact over the past decade:

– 86M euros disbursed, of which 93% in Sub-Saharan Africa ;

– 75% of average outstandings in local currency ;

– 92 customers financed in 25 countries;

– 139 technical support projects carried out for 51 customers.

FEFISOL II builds on FEFISOL I’s pioneering support for rural microfinance and the agricultural sector. The challenge posed by the lack of financing for rural areas in Africa, and for farmers in particular, remains crucial.

In Africa, less than 5% of loans disbursed by traditional financial institutions are earmarked for the agricultural sector, and less than 10% of farmers have access to credit. And this despite the fact that around 48% of the population depends on agriculture. Although it makes a major contribution to many African economies, the agricultural sector is still poorly served financially, as it is often perceived as too risky or not profitable enough.

Rural communities face multiple challenges: the remoteness of financing, but also the growing risks induced by climate change, as well as the financial inclusion of women, who represent 60% of the agricultural workforce in Africa without often being able to benefit from the same rights as men.

FEFISOL II is structured to provide financial and technical support for solutions designed locally to meet these challenges. FEFISOL II will be implemented in over 25 countries in sub-Saharan Africa, and is expected to support 130 microfinance institutions or agricultural companies and cooperatives sourcing from smallholders and certified fair trade or organic.

Other investors are joining FEFISOL II for a round of financing that will close at the end of March: the first investments will be effective from May!

 

 

Successful 5th African Microfinance Week in Kigali

[chapeau]The 5th edition of African Microfinance Week brought together nearly 600 inclusive finance professionals from 55 countries in Kigali, Rwanda. A tremendous success![/chapeau]

African Microfinance Week (AMW) is the largest conference on inclusive finance in Africa. Organized every two years in a different African country, it features conferences, training and workshops, an innovators’ village, and of course the investor fair in which the SIDI team plays an active part. A networking event dedicated exclusively to investors and African MFIs, the investor fair enables SIDI to forge future partnerships.

The SAM is an essential event for exchanging and sharing expertise on inclusive finance. The theme chosen for this year’s event was resilience: ” You’re not born resilient, you become resilient: strengthening inclusive finance to better overcome crises “. This was the first time the SAM had been held in Rwanda. This choice has enabled us to shine the spotlight on a country that has shown tremendous resilience and a phenomenal ability to adapt.

As always, the SIDI team was on hand. The emotion of being back in the flesh, and seeing the success of our participation, was palpable.

Why so many people? The impact of microfinance has always been the subject of debate. It’s a fact that microfinance is resilient, that it continues to provide concrete solutions and that, thanks to the leverage it generates, it enables individuals to define their own destiny.

At this 5th edition, everyone was able to gauge the vitality of African MFIs. In the face of the health crisis, MFIs ultimately managed to cope with the liquidity problems they faced. This shows the considerable work carried out by MFIs over the past 20 years, making them already resilient. The current crises – whether the health crisis linked to Covid19, the ensuing economic crisis, the issue of access to employment for young people, or the crucial challenge of adapting to climate change – must also be an opportunity to change practices, innovate, and advance the solutions that enable this adaptation. From the investor’s point of view, crises can have the beneficial effect of encouraging us to get closer and more involved together.

SIDI continues to forge ahead, placing solidarity at the heart of the economy and finance. Invest in small MFIs, establish long-term partnerships, share the partners’ vision and risk, so that these partnerships serve to consolidate the structures. Supporting the MAIN network in its capacity building program for its members – over 125 African MFIs! Defend the importance of technical assistance and support in response to the needs expressed by partners, to serve an inclusive economy in a process of ecological and social transition.

Some pictures of the event:

(c)GODONG // (c)SIDI

The 2020 activity report is available online

Couv_RA2020_FR(final)

A pioneer in solidarity investment in the South and East, SIDI publishes its annual report

SIDI offers its partners tailor-made financing and support, and thus works towards a form of finance that generates greater social and environmental impact, transparency and solidarity. A look back at the highlights of 2020 and our activities in favor of the ecological and social transition.

 

 

 

 

[CP] SIDI and Crédit Coopératif: a strengthened partnership at the service of solidarity finance

0001[CP] SIDI and Crédit Coopératif intensify their relationship for solidarity investment.

 

SIDI and Crédit Coopératif are pleased to announce the strengthening of their partnership in the service of solidarity finance.

By acquiring a stake in Inpulse Investment Manager, a microfinance fund management company and subsidiary of Crédit Coopératif, SIDI will be able to expand its range of services for its partners in developing countries. This will give SIDI considerable additional leverage to attract new investors via the impact funds it will be developing with Inpulse and Crédit Coopératif.

SIDI promotes finance that serves integral, socially just and ecologically sustainable development, based on the values of solidarity, trust, ethics and transparency. Its private and institutional shareholders give it the means to carry out its activities, and in return expect added value that is exclusively human, social and environmental.

 

 

 

Publication of the new social and environmental report

Discover SIDI’s new social and environmental report

 

 

This year’s Social and Environmental Review looks back over the four years of SIDI’s 2017-2020 Strategic Plan.

A wealth of information and figures highlighting the importance of the two pillars on which SIDI’s action towards its partners is based: financing and support.

An assessment that measures our progress, and that of our partners, in terms of ecological and social transition.

→ 139 partners in 36 countries

→ Growth in SIDI’s overall portfolio: from €25.1m in 2017 to €37.3m by the end of 2020

→ Africa remains SIDI’s No. 1 priority: 67% of partners, 56% of its portfolio by the end of 2020

→ Micro-finance institutions focused on rural financing, producer organizations mostly certified organic and fair trade

→ A focus on the most vulnerable populations: 46% of beneficiaries are women and 47% are from rural areas

Social and environmental report 2017-2020

 

 

 

SIDI commits to protecting MFIs in the face of the Covid-19 crisis

[chapeau]Since the beginning of the crisis linked to the Covid-19 pandemic, SIDI has maintained an ongoing dialogue with international microfinance players. As part of this commitment, we have recently committed to a set of key principles developed collectively to help MFIs and their customers cope with the effects of the crisis.[/chapeau]

SIDI is a member of a think tank, made up of microfinance players, which met in April 2020, at the initiative of the Grameen Crédit Agricole Foundation, to discuss the situation and define a joint commitment to guide the response to the health and economic crisis. This could spell trouble for many MFIs and their customers, leaving vulnerable populations in desperate straits. The challenge was therefore to jointly find solutions to limit the effects of the crisis as much as possible, while continuing to strengthen financial inclusion for vulnerable populations. A list of key principles to be respected between investors has been drawn up to protect both MFIs and their customers, and guarantee continued access to financing under the best possible conditions.

By signing this agreement, SIDI undertakes to respect this non-exhaustive list of principles(full document here):

  • Information transparency and sharing
  • Adapting and aligning intervention principles to overcome the effects of the crisis
  • The implementation of shared and equitable solutions between lenders
  • Coordinated provision of technical assistance and resources to help MFIs deal effectively with the crisis

In the current context, it is essential to forge operational alliances between microfinance players in order to best support those MFIs that will be hardest hit by the crisis. SIDI is thus preparing to adapt and soften the profile of its relationships with its partner organizations, according to its capacities and in a coordinated manner.

Discover the press release

 

To consult the complete list of key principles for dealing with the Covid-19 crisis, click here.