October 2018 - Fondation Grameen Crédit-Agricole

UNHCR, Sida and the Foundation join forces for the inclusion of refugees

October 16, 2018/0 Comments/in News/by Marie Laumont

The Grameen Crédit Agricole Foundation, UNHCR, and Sida are joining forces to develop a program that promotes access to credit for refugees and host communities. Microfinanza has conducted an initial study in Uganda and Jordan, with the possibility of expanding the program to other countries.

A financial inclusion program for refugees

Often perceived as too risky a clientele, refugees generally receive little or no service from financial service providers. However, the needs of these populations are significant, and access to financing for income-generating activities can contribute to their social inclusion. To address this issue, the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), the Swedish Cooperation Agency, and the Grameen Crédit Agricole Foundation are working together to prepare a credit access program for refugees and host communities. The first phase of preliminary research has just been completed.

The Grameen Crédit Agricole Foundation was selected to manage the technical assistance and support its partner microfinance institutions in developing a range of products and services tailored to refugee populations. Under the Foundation's coordination, field missions were conducted by Microfinanza to assess refugees' needs for financial and non-financial services in Uganda and Jordan, the first two countries in the program.

A first assessment in Uganda and Jordan

In Uganda, despite a well-structured refugee reception policy that promotes their integration, employment opportunities are limited. Approximately 1.5 million refugees currently live in the country, mostly concentrated in rural areas, where the difficulties of finding employment and accessing financing are even more significant.

In Jordan, 750,000 refugees are currently registered. Due to regulatory obstacles, this population remains largely excluded from the labor market. At the same time, the local microfinance sector, still very young, lacks the resources necessary to expand the range of initiatives developed for refugee groups.

It was in these contexts that the program's first study was conducted. Beyond assessing refugees' financial needs, the study established avenues for better addressing them. The second phase of the program will aim to develop, through financing and technical assistance, the services offered to refugees by the Grameen Crédit Agricole Foundation's partner microfinance institutions.

You can download the reports by clicking on the links below:

Full report (EN): Jordan – Uganda
Executive Summary (EN): Jordan – Uganda

Access the blog on the Findev Gateway website by clicking here.

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To find out more

The United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) is mandated by the United Nations to coordinate international action for the protection of refugees. The organization provides essential assistance, helps guarantee fundamental rights, and develops solutions aimed at the well-being of its target populations. UNHCR works in 128 countries on behalf of 74.1 million people.
http://www.unhcr.org/ / @Refugees

The Swedish International Development Cooperation Agency (Sida) is an agency working on behalf of the Swedish parliament and government with the mission of reducing global poverty. Through its activities and in cooperation with other stakeholders, it contributes to the implementation of Swedish international development policy. The agency is present in 35 countries in Africa, Asia, Europe, and Latin America.
www.sida.se / @Sida

Microfinanza is a company specializing in services and technical assistance related to the microfinance sector. Its mission is to contribute to financial inclusion and participate in the growth and professionalization of the sector. With over fifteen years of experience, Microfinanza operates through a variety of activities: consulting projects, training, evaluations, and the preparation of studies and research.
https://www.microfinanza.com/

Solidarity Bankers, the Crédit Agricole group's volunteer program

October 12, 2018/0 Comments/in News/by Marie Laumont

At the initiative of the Grameen Crédit Agricole Foundation and Crédit Agricole SA, volunteer missions with skills labeled "Solidarity Banker" are offered to employees on behalf of microfinance institutions or "social business" type companies, partners of the Foundation.

Many Crédit Agricole Group employees volunteer for solidarity projects. To support this momentum, the Group has launched "CA Solidaires," a program that promotes employee engagement in projects with a positive societal impact. It is within this framework that a new engagement format is now offered to the Group's employees: Solidarity Leave. At the initiative of the Grameen Crédit Agricole Foundation and Crédit Agricole SA, skills-based volunteer missions labeled "Solidarity Banker" are offered to employees on behalf of microfinance institutions or social businesses that are partners of the Foundation.

This is a unique partnership in the history of Crédit Agricole and the Grameen Crédit Agricole Foundation. With "Solidarity Banker," the Group and the Foundation are leveraging their synergies and strengthening their efforts to promote sustainable finance. The goal: to leverage the skills of Crédit Agricole Group employees and provide additional support to microfinance institutions and social enterprises supported by the Foundation through pro bono assignments carried out by employees.

First missions to Burkina Faso, Senegal and Cambodia

The first mission carried out under the "Solidarity Banker" program took place in Burkina Faso, in cooperation with Crédit Agricole Assurances. Eduardo Cardoso de Miranda, a borrower insurance expert at CA Assurances, assisted the Foundation in conducting due diligence on the company CIF-VIE. Created in 2013 with the support of RCPB, the main Burkinabé microfinance cooperative network, and the NGO ADA, CIF-VIE operates in the microinsurance sector and holds 6% of the local market share. Currently entering a new stage in its growth, CIF-VIE is opening its capital to new shareholders. Thanks to the contributions made by CA Assurances, the Foundation was able to better understand the structure and assess the possibility of investing in it. The evaluation of the CIF-VIE financing application is underway.

A second mission took place in Senegal, in favor of the Laiterie du Berger, a social enterprise in which the Foundation is a shareholder and which currently supports more than 800 Fulani herders in the north of the country. With the support of Crédit Agricole Franche-Comté (a shareholder of the Laiterie du Berger), Jonathan Michaud, an agricultural engineer from the Caisse Régionale, went on a two-week technical assistance mission. The objective: to structure an operational framework allowing the transition from experimentation to the deployment of 15 pilot mini-farms of the Laiterie. The result of the mission was the formalization of an action plan and a more ambitious collaboration between Crédit Agricole Franche Comté and the Laiterie is envisaged.

With Banque de Proximité à l'International (BPI), a mission took place between September and October in Cambodia for Chamroeun, a microfinance institution supported by the Foundation. François Galland, Director of International Human Resources, spent two weeks on the ground to help improve the HR management of Chamroeun, a microfinance institution supported by the Foundation. The HR strategy developed following the mission will support the organizational restructuring of Chamroeun, which currently serves more than 25,200 clients in Cambodia, including 821,300 women.

Upcoming missions to Morocco and Kazakhstan

Before the end of 2018, two more missions could be launched for Al-Karama in Morocco and KMF in Kazakhstan. Al-Karama currently serves more than 26,200 clients in Morocco. It should be able to benefit from financing and technical assistance as part of a cooperation scheme between the Foundation and Crédit du Maroc, including a "Solidarity Banker" mission to improve its anti-money laundering and counter-terrorist financing (AML-CFT) systems. KMF is the leading microfinance institution in Kazakhstan with more than 220,000 active borrowers and a portfolio of €257 million. The institution will receive an expert from Crédit Agricole to help it develop its product and service offerings.

The Crédit Agricole Group's commitment to the Grameen Crédit Agricole Foundation is thus strengthened with the "Solidarity Banker" program, which marks the mutualist Group's commitment to sustainable finance, capable of promoting a more responsible and better shared economy.

How to apply?

Several missions are coming up on CA Solidaires. To discover them:
– Go to the CA Solidaires website “Find your mission”
– Enter “Grameen Foundation” in the search bar. All Solidarity Leave offers will appear!
– Click on the offer of your choice, you will find all the information necessary for your application.
More information: carolina.herrera@credit-agricole-sa.fr

“Let’s Change Our Perspectives” Photo Exhibition: 10 Years of the Foundation

October 12, 2018/0 Comments/in News/by Marie Laumont

As part of the celebration of its 10th anniversary, the Grameen Crédit Agricole Foundation, in partnership with Crédit Agricole SA, is organizing the photo exhibition "Changing Our Perspectives" on the Crédit Agricole campuses in Montrouge and Saint Quentin.

A photo exhibition to celebrate the Foundation's 10th anniversary

The Foundation was created in 2008 under the joint leadership of Crédit Agricole SA and the 2006 Nobel Peace Prize winner and founder of the Grameen Trust, Professor Muhammad Yunus, to participate in the fight against poverty by promoting microfinance and social entrepreneurship. Today, with €77 million in commitments and more than 70 partners in some thirty countries, this historic partnership is being honored as part of the photo exhibition "Changing Our Perspectives: 10 Years of the Grameen Crédit Agricole Foundation."

Through photos of beneficiaries of the partner microfinance institutions that the Foundation supports, the exhibition takes stock of 10 years of activity in favor of inclusive finance and demonstrates the importance of microfinance and social entrepreneurship as levers of socio-economic development.

The exhibition will be open from October 18 to November 30 on the Crédit Agricole campus in Montrouge and from December 1 to 31 on the Saint Quentin campus.

A preview with the Circle of Friends of the Foundation

The exhibition preview will take place during the third meeting of the Circle of Friends of the Foundation, on Thursday, October 18, from 5:30 p.m. to 7:00 p.m., at the Forum of the Crédit Agricole Campus in Montrouge. The Circle is a space open exclusively to employees and directors of the Crédit Agricole Group (entities and Regional Banks) interested in the activities and mission of the Foundation. It is a circle for sharing information and exchanging ideas that will contribute to discussions around synergies to be exploited with the Group in the years to come. To date, the Circle has more than 150 members from the Group's various business lines.

This meeting will be an opportunity to take stock of two new projects launched this year by the Foundation and Crédit Agricole: "Centimes solidaires" and "Banquier Solidaire." "Centimes Solidaires" is an initiative launched in October in Crédit Agricole's collective restaurants in Montrouge and Saint-Quentin to finance entrepreneurial projects. "Banquier Solidaire" is a skills-based volunteer program for Group employees on behalf of the Foundation's partner institutions. It will also be an opportunity to discover the events organized in November on the Montrouge campus during Grameen Crédit Agricole Foundation Week.

Crédit Agricole supports entrepreneurship projects for refugees

October 8, 2018/0 Comments/in News/by Marie Laumont

The Grameen Crédit Agricole Foundation and Crédit Agricole SA are launching "Centimes Solidaires," an initiative aimed at financing entrepreneurial projects by mobilizing Crédit Agricole employees.

Promoting the commitment of Crédit Agricole employees

Many Crédit Agricole Group employees volunteer for solidarity projects. To support this dynamic, the Group has created "CA Solidaires," a program that promotes employee engagement in projects with a positive societal impact. It is within this framework that the "Centimes Solidaires" operation will be launched at the initiative of the Grameen Crédit Agricole Foundation and Crédit Agricole SA to finance entrepreneurship projects. This operation, the first of its kind between Crédit Agricole and the Foundation, will be repeated annually to support various projects with a strong social impact.

For one week each month in October and November, employees at the Crédit Agricole campuses in Montrouge and Saint-Quentin will be invited to make a donation of 50 cents when paying for their meals in the collective restaurants. Crédit Agricole SA, Crédit Agricole Centre-Est, and the Grameen Crédit Agricole Foundation will contribute to the operation. The total amount collected will support the "Programme France" program, run by the French NGO Entrepreneurs du Monde.

Supporting an inclusion program through entrepreneurship

Piloted since the beginning of 2018 in the Lyon region with the support of the Solidarités Foundation by Crédit Agricole Centre-est and Crédit Agricole Solidarité et Développement, Entrepreneurs du Monde's "France Program" aims to restore hope to people in situations of financial vulnerability and proven social exclusion in France. Through group training and personalized support for business creation, the program aims to support refugees, homeless people, and single parents in the creation and development of their entrepreneurial projects.

The proposed support takes place in three stages: listening and guidance to assess the feasibility and relevance of the project, pre-creation support, and post-creation monitoring. Grocery stores, restaurants, computer repairs, and fashion design are a variety of businesses that will be supported under the program, which has already supported 13 project leaders to date. For the coming years, the goal is to reach a larger number of beneficiaries, with a total of 40 project leaders by the end of 2019 and 50 in 2020.

The "Centimes Solidaires" initiative is being launched to mark the 10th anniversary of the Grameen Crédit Agricole Foundation. The funds raised will be presented at an event bringing together Group employees on November 19 in Montrouge.