Title: Access to finance for small and medium-sized enterprises
Commissioned by: German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ)
Country: Senegal
Lead executing agency: Ministry of Commerce and SME promotion
Overall term: 2020 to 2024
Small and medium-sized enterprise (SMEs), including micro enterprises, account for 98 per cent of companies in Senegal and are therefore the backbone of the Senegalese economy. However, they receive just nine per cent of the loans issued to businesses. According to studies, the lack of access to finance is the key factor that prevents SMEs from investing and expanding – and thus creating new jobs.
The challenge: For banks and other financial institutions, processing requests from SMEs is often complicated and expensive, especially as many small businesses in Senegal have neither reliable financial data nor a customer history.
The businesses themselves are often lost in the maze of offers. Which financial product is right for me? What documents do I need and who can help me compile them? Questions like these often prevent businesses from getting in contact with banks.
SMEs have better access to finance.
The project helps to bring SMEs and financial institutions together faster and with greater ease, so that more businesses receive finance and financial institutions can expand their SME business in the long term.
The core of the project is an online platform on which SMEs can create a profile and register their finance requirements. The businesses are then supported by partner organisations in improving and completing their finance request. The financial institutions receive this request and thus gain direct access to customers who have been pre-assessed by a state agency.
Furthermore, the project develops a coordination forum in which Senegalese institutions from politics and the private sector can come together. Jointly, they work on proposals for making finance even more accessible for SMEs.
Last update: June 2022
