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The Grameen Crédit Agricole Foundation is a multi-business operator whose mission is to contribute to the fight against poverty by promoting financial inclusion and entrepreneurship with social impact.
The Foundation has four main activities and coordinates Solidarity bankers, Crédit Agricole Group’s skills volunteering programme.
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Lazika Capital is a microfinance institution created in 2000 by Oxfam Great Britain in Georgia. Its mission is to facilitate access to financial services for low and middle income entrepreneurs.
Lazika Capital is among the leaders in the Georgian microfinance sector and has nearly 14,000 clients. The agricultural sector represents 52% of its portfolio.
In 2020, in response to the Covid-19 crisis, Lazika Capital provided significant benefits to its clients directly affected by the health and economic crisis. During this period, the Grameen Crédit Agricole Foundation, alongside other lenders, supported Lazika Capital to limit a decline in its liquidity and ensure that the institution could continue to finance its clients. Although the health situation has improved in 2021, the institution remains actively involved in various government programmes to reduce the negative impact of the pandemic and accelerate economic recovery.
Lazika Capital was the first microfinance institution in Georgia to be allowed, by the National Bank, to offer remote services.
To support entrepreneurs, especially in the agricultural sector, Lazika Capital offers its clients technological improvements to make their products and services more diversified and flexible.
Indeed, the institution uses digital tablets for better application management in the field. This digital offering was particularly useful during the lockdown period, as clients could apply for loans, be informed of their approval and make repayments without visiting a branch.
The positive results achieved in 2020 prove that Lazika Capital is a resilient institution, able to face challenges while continuing to be a successful, reliable and responsible partner in the microfinance sector. The Grameen Crédit Agricole Foundation, on its side, pursues its support to the institution with which it has been working since 2017, in order to continue supporting Georgian entrepreneurship, despite the challenges in this uncertain period.
More information on Lazika here.
Three online and three field Solidarity Bankers’ missions are currently available on behalf of the Grameen Crédit Agricole Foundation.
Solidarity Bankers is a skills volunteering programme launched by the Foundation and Crédit Agricole S.A. in 2018 and aimed at all Crédit Agricole Group employees. The programme has a twofold objective: on the one hand, support microfinance institutions and social impact enterprises financed by the Foundation with technical assistance, and on the other hand, enhance the skills of Group employees who want to invest themselves in projects with high social impact.
The missions can take place during the Solidarity Banker’s working time and/or during holidays (volunteering).
Currently, six missions are available, online or in the field:
The experts selected for the online missions will work remotely and will devote the equivalent of one day per week, for 15 weeks, to the mission.
The three online missions are to be filled as soon as possible.
OXUS Kyrgyzstan (OKG) is a microfinance institution that provides financial services to the working poor and under-banked in Kyrgyzstan. The institution serves 8,000 active borrowers and manages a portfolio of EUR 6.4 million.
A Solidarity Banker mission is planned from July 2021 to support OKG in the evaluation of its digitalisation processes and in the construction of a new digital strategy. The expert sought is a Crédit Agricole employee with significant experience in IT project management. Fluency in English is essential.
The mission description is available here.
FATEN is a microfinance institution in Palestine. The institution has more than 26,000 clients and manages a portfolio of EUR 108 million.
The selected Crédit Agricole expert will support FATEN in updating financial procedures, policies and tools. The Solidarity Banker must be fluent in English and have knowledge of international financial reporting standards and in particular of the latest changes to IFRS 16 and IFRS 9. Fluency or very good knowledge of Arabic is a plus. At a minimum, fluency in English will be required.
The mission description is available here.
Smart Credit is a microfinance institution that provides financial services to socially disadvantaged people and small entrepreneurs in Moldova. The institution has more than 3,000 active borrowers and manages a portfolio of 4.4 million euros.
The Solidarity Banker will be in charge of helping to build the digital strategy of Smart Crédit. The expert is an employee of the Crédit Agricole Group who is fluent in English and has experience in IT project management.
The mission description is available here.
The three field missions are to be filled as soon as possible, depending on the current health situation.
Oshun is a social enterprise that offers inclusive solutions, especially in the form of solar-powered water kiosks, allowing the most vulnerable populations access to clean water. Oshun Senegal is completing a process of administrative and HR structuring and wishes to strengthen its support functions, primarily logistics and purchasing.
The selected Crédit Agricole expert will support Oshun in setting up procedures to simplify and secure logistics, procurement and supply management, and strengthen the staff involved. The mission will last 10 days, first remotely from France and then on the ground in Senegal if health conditions allow. The Solidarity Banker must have solid experience in logistics and procurement management and, ideally, experience in training and coaching in the field of procurement.
The mission description is available here.
SEF is a microfinance institution that provides loans through a network of 98 branches in South Africa. The institution has 225,317 active borrowers and manages a portfolio of more than EUR 45 million.
The selected Crédit Agricole expert is responsible for supporting the Quality and Compliance Department and the Training Department in developing relevant training materials on AML/CFT issues for employees. The Solidarity Banker must have at least 5 years of experience in compliance. The mission will last two weeks, including 10 days in the field.
The mission description is available here.
Lazika Capital is a Tier 2 microfinance institution in Georgia. The organisation operates through 18 branches in western Georgia.
The selected Crédit Agricole expert will be responsible for evaluating the organisation’s marketing strategy and actions, as well as developing a marketing plan for mid-2021/2020. The Solidarity Banker must have a solid experience in marketing. A good mastery of English is required. The mission will last 20 days, including 10 days in the field.
The mission statement is available here.
To discover the details of the missions:
For more information, you can contact: cecile.delhomme@crédit-agricole-sa.fr
Interview with Dumitru Svinarenco, Chief Executive Officer of Microinvest (Republic of Moldova) about investments in Moldovan agriculture in main facilities of Agri loans.
Microinvest is a non-bank credit organization with mixed capital. We managed to prove our major role in the Moldovan financial market by supporting local businesses, agriculture and individuals and directly contributing to the development of the country’s economy.
According to the size of the portfolio, we rank 6th among the banking system, while maintaining the leading position on non-bank credit market in the country. We are different from other financial companies thanks to the customized solutions and important benefits in the lending process that we offer to each client, including agricultural entrepreneurs. We are the only NBFI in Moldova to hold the international quality certificate – SMART, which proves that we are a responsible and trustworthy lender.
Every year, the agricultural sector is developing and modernizing thanks to successful entrepreneurs and responsible investments. 30% of our overall LP and more than 40% of our business LP is dedicated to the agri field, to the support of agricultural businesses and farms, which need financial investments for quality agriculture.
The year 2020 had a major impact on the Moldovan agricultural segment, which were directly confronted with the Covid-19 crisis, but also with the unprecedented drought, which led to a season with minimal harvests.
Microinvest was among the first organizations to cancel the penalties at the beginning of the pandemic, both for business owners and individuals. Throughout this period, our experts have assessed the situation of each entrepreneur. We have been open to come up with solutions for restructuring and extending the terms of loans, without charging fees.
As the pandemic had just started, we continued to lend to farmers so that they could begin the agricultural season as planned. Despite the difficulties, some of our clients have managed to develop successful households and gather great results from the investments made.
Microinvest started the interactions with GCAF in 2019 and signed the first loan agreement in May 2020, at the peak of the highest lockdown restrictions imposed by most countries. This first loan from GCAF was an impulse for other lenders, proving that even new lenders believed in our financial stability and in our adequate reaction to crisis. The second loan has already been disbursed in March 2021.
The Foundation maintained transparent communication with us, listened to our needs and supported the search for suitable solutions. We consider GCAF as a reliable partner, therefore we plan to develop and strengthen our cooperation in the future.
Digitization occupies a special place in our communication and development strategy. We follow a balanced formula: combining digital automation with personal discussions with customers, visits and direct interactions. Entrepreneurs appreciate the expertise and the value of an individual approach which lead to tailer-made financial solutions. At the same time, we tend to go for the massive digitization of retail lines, simplifying the lending process, and thus saving our customer time.
We are confident that agriculture in Moldova is one of the strategic segments for our country. We support individuals and legal entities in their plans for growth and business transformation. In 2021, we came up with a special offer for business clients – unsecured credits up to MDL 1,700,000, so that they can successfully achieve their goals. Both we and the farmers have high expectations for the new agricultural season. A good year will give additional strength to the agricultural sector, but also additional desire to invest in the modernization of agricultural practices, by purchasing new high-performance equipment.
