Since 2019, the Grameen Crédit Agricole Foundation, Swedish International Development Cooperation Agency (Sida) and the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) have joined forces to support refugee populations in Uganda through an innovative program aimed at improving the livelihoods, resilience and financial inclusion of both refugees and host communities.

Uganda hosts approximately 1.5 million refugees and asylum seekers, making it the largest refugee-hosting country in Africa and the third largest in the world. It is one of the countries with the most progressive refugee policies in the world and a leading country in implementing the Comprehensive Refugee Response Framework (CRRF) and the Global Compact on Refugees (GCR). In Uganda, refugees enjoy freedom of movement, the right to work, and have been included in the country's National Development Plan III. They are allocated land, live in settlements close to host communities, and have access to the same national public services, including health, education, water, livelihoods, and sanitation.

A large majority of the refugees (94%) live in 13 settlements located in the southwest and north of the country. The remaining 6% live in urban areas near Kampala. Despite Uganda's progressive and inclusive policies, the poverty rate among refugees is nearly twice that of host communities, creating challenges for peaceful coexistence and security issues, particularly for women, girls, and people with special needs.

The program developed by the Foundation, UNHCR, and Sida aims to improve access to credit and savings for refugees and their host communities so they can develop income-generating activities. This program, which leverages mixed financing (public and private capital), has three components: a guarantee fund, debt financing by the Foundation for three microfinance institutions (MFIs) (Vision Fund Uganda, Brac Uganda Bank Ltd, and Ugafode), and technical assistance for the MFIs and refugees. The Grameen Crédit Agricole Foundation, with financial support from Sida, coordinates the program, which also offers refugees non-financial services such as business training and financial education.

Thanks to the program, the supported MFIs were able to open new branches in the districts of Moyo (Parlorinya settlement), Yumbe (Bidibidi settlement) and Isingiro (Nakivale settlement) where many refugees live. Thus, VisionFund Uganda, a partner of the Foundation since 2020, served 28,739 active borrowers at the end of 2022 in branches managed under the program (including 20 refugee %s and 72 women %s), for an outstanding loan of UGX 3.3 billion (EUR 868,663). In the branches concerned, significant digitalization work was carried out with 100% digital disbursements. The field visits carried out by the Foundation's teams also provided a better understanding of the challenges faced in increasing the financial inclusion of refugees: difficulties in recruiting refugee staff, various problems faced by clients (health problems, droughts, reduction of food rations, people returning to South Sudan). A new objective for the institution is the establishment of insurance products (agriculture, health) for clients because over time, the needs of the host populations evolve.

To date, despite various constraints and risks, particularly those related to the COVID-19 pandemic, the program has grown well. A recent evaluation revealed that out of a sample of 373 respondents, 91 new jobs had been created either through new businesses or the expansion of existing activities. More than 80% of the 289 beneficiaries surveyed and who received training also reported having started saving. Similarly, 78% of the beneficiaries reported that the knowledge and skills acquired during the training they received contributed to the growth of their businesses.

This innovative project will continue to expand with the goal of providing access to quality financial services and training to as many people as possible. To achieve this, the program will intensify financial education training to reach as many refugees and host communities as possible, continue customer surveys to facilitate informed decision-making, and develop refugee-friendly products while continuing to roll out the project model in other refugee camps.

Learn more about the program Financial Inclusion of Refugees.

Advans Côte d'Ivoire celebrated its 10th anniversary on March 23, 2022, in Abidjan. The ceremony was attended by approximately 80 guests.

Founded in 2012, Advans Côte d'Ivoire, a partner of the Grameen Crédit Agricole Foundation, currently operates through a network of 22 branches, employing over 650 people. The institution currently serves over 160,000 clients with outstanding loans of over 65 billion FCFA.

True to the mission that has made it a success, Advans Côte d'Ivoire continues to help small businesses grow by providing sustainable access to simple and adaptable financial products and services. To achieve this, it relies on the use of innovative services, local distribution models, and the digitalization of its product offering.

For its innovative digital payment and savings solution for cocoa producers and cooperatives, Advans Côte d'Ivoire was awarded the 2018 European Microfinance Award for "Financial Inclusion through Technology." Named "Best Financial Institution for Credit Services" for the third consecutive year and "Best Financial Institution for Agricultural Finance Offerings" for the first time, the institution continues to garner awards with the African Consumer Label.

In ten years, Advans Côte d'Ivoire has been able to develop a wide range of products adapted to the realities and expectations of disadvantaged populations.

To learn more about Advans Côte d'Ivoire, click here.

© Philippe Lissac / Godong

In September, the Grameen Crédit Agricole Foundation granted new financing in Eastern Europe, particularly in Moldova, where it is strengthening its support for the microfinance institution. Smart Credit.

The institution was thus granted a new loan in the amount of €500,000 in local currency, over a period of four years. Smart Credit is a microfinance institution whose objective is to help clients improve their living conditions, particularly socially disadvantaged small entrepreneurs. The institution currently has more than 3,000 active borrowers, including 54% women and 71% rural clients, and manages a portfolio of nearly €4 million.

To learn more about our partners, Click here.

Financial services play a vital role in emerging economies and are a key contributor to achieving the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). However, one in three adults in developing countries remains unbanked and lacks access to basic financial services to help them manage household finances.

Expanding access to finance among these underserved populations allows them to improve their financial resilience, seize business opportunities that would otherwise remain out of reach, and create new jobs, thereby contributing to several SDGs. For example, financial services such as loans, savings accounts, and insurance products contribute to poverty reduction (SDG 1: No Poverty) by providing low-income households with mechanisms to better manage their finances. Furthermore, targeting women's financial inclusion contributes to gender equality (SDG 5: Gender Equality), since low-income women represent the largest share of unbanked adults and often lack the resources to control their finances. Other tailored financial services targeting farmers can also contribute to food security (such as SDG 2: Zero Hunger) by increasing agricultural productivity and supporting smallholder farmers.

Through these channels, the Symbiotics portfolio aims to contribute to sustainable development and economic growth by expanding access to finance among low- and middle-income households in emerging and frontier markets.

The Symbiotics 2021 Impact Report analyzes and presents the social and environmental impact of Symbiotics' investments as of December 2021.

Download the report here.

The 4 per 1000 initiative, launched by France at COP21 in 2015, brings together voluntary stakeholders from the public and private sectors to launch concrete actions "to improve soil health. It carries the vision of healthy, carbon-rich soils on a global scale to combat climate change and end world hunger." The ambition of 4 per 1000 is to engage the world's farmers in regenerative, resilient, and biodiversity-friendly agriculture.

The ambition of the International 4 per 1000 Initiative is to encourage land users to move towards diversified, productive, resource-efficient and highly resilient agriculture and forestry, based on appropriate management of natural resources, particularly land, soil and water, thereby strengthening agricultural activities and the global economy and ensuring sustainable development.

This Initiative invites all stakeholders (producers, scientific community, private sector, NGOs, regional and local authorities, countries, international organizations, development banks, foundations, etc.) to promote and implement practical actions based on science, based on successful experiences.

The Initiative aims to involve stakeholders in developing a global monitoring system to better assess soil carbon stocks and establish appropriate public policies.

For Vincent Brousseau, Director of Impact Financing at the Grameen Crédit Agricole Foundation, “ The Foundation's choice to become a member of the international 4 per 1000 initiative in September 2022 reflects our desire to work closely with partners keen to promote the experiences of farming communities to strengthen the resilience of their territories. We fully embrace 4 per 1000's holistic approach to regenerative agriculture as a means of adapting to and combating climate change, but also as a powerful lever for improving food security and the economic prosperity of farmers.. »

More information about theinternational initiative 4 per 1000 here.

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Source: 4 per 1000 Initiative