The International Finance Corporation (IFC) and La Banque Internationale pour le Commerce et l’Industrie de la Côte d’Ivoire (BICICI) today announced a cooperation to increase the financing options for the country’s small businesses, health sector organisations, and trade organisations to assist their expansion, service delivery, and job creation.
As part of the partnership, IFC will give BICICI a $30 million financing package, which includes a $5 million credit line from IFC’s Global Trade Finance Programme and two risk-sharing facilities that will cover half of the credit risk for loans the bank makes to SMEs in Côte d’Ivoire up to $25 million, including loans to companies in the health sector to help them pay for the purchase of medical equipment.
SMEs are a key engine of private sector growth in Côte d’Ivoire, accounting for 98 percent of formally registered businesses and employing about a quarter of the country’s working population. However, financial inclusion remains a challenge, with only about a third of SMEs in Côte d’Ivoire having access to a loan or line of credit. The health sector and women-owned businesses face even stricter credit constraints.
”We are proud to partner with IFC to better support Côte d’Ivoire’s SMEs, including hospitals, clinics, pathology laboratories, diagnostic imaging centres, and medical equipment distributors, by financing much-needed medical equipment and, more generally, providing support to help them grow. The signing of these agreements further reassures our customers and partners of the capital of trust that BICICI still enjoys,” said Ahmed Cissé, BICICI’s chairman.
“IFC’s financing will boost financial inclusion for underserved segments in Côte d’Ivoire such as SMEs, small- and medium-sized healthcare businesses, and women-owned businesses. Our partnership with BICICI will not only increase access to critical financing for trade and small businesses but will also support the healthcare sector to acquire vital medical equipment, benefitting more patients across income groups, said Olivier Buyoya, IFC’s Regional Director for West Africa.
The risk sharing facilities are part of IFC’s Small Loan Guarantee Program and Africa Medical Equipment Facility (AMEF). Both programs will support BICICI to provide $324 million in loans to SMEs by 2027, helping to narrow the SME financing gap in Côte d’Ivoire. In addition, IFC’s AMEF will also provide capacity building services for both health sector businesses and BICICI.
IFC’s investment is supported by the International Development Association’s Private Sector Window Blended Finance Facility. The investment also includes support from the Women Entrepreneurs Finance Initiative to incentivize BICICI to increase its lending to women-owned SMEs.
