DID gets contract to develop microfinance in West Africa

Microfinance Focus, Nov. 23, 2009: Développement international Desjardins (DID) has been awarded two new contracts to provide assistance to the microfinance sector in West Africa. The development strategy includes strengthening West African microfinance institutions (MFI) professional associations.
It is noteworthy that microfinance activities have shown strong growth over the last ten years in the eight countries Benin, Burkina Faso, Côte d’Ivoire, Guinea Bissau, Mali, Niger, Senegal and Togo. Even, regulatory authorities are keen to structure the microfinance sector for sound growth and greater outreach of community financial services.
For this purpose, new legislation requires all microfinance institutions to join national MFI professional associations which will be called on to play an ever greater role in self-regulation and better structuring of the microfinance sector. In turn it will lead to emphasis on capacity building and sustainability for these associations.
DID has been roped in to conduct a diagnostic analysis of all MFI professional associations in West Africa and based on its study, proposals will be formulated to ensure viability and operational modes for these associations. This project is receiving funding from the Government of Luxembourg (Lux-Development) and from the Central Bank of West African States (BCEAO).

ASSISTANCE TO BURKINO FASO

DID will also provide capacity building assistance for APIM, the Association professionnelle des institutions de microfinance, an association of 55 MFIs located throughout Burkina Faso. APIM has been playing an active role since 2002 in government development of the Burkinan microfinance strategy and action plan. DID will work with APIM to improve the association, orienting it towards the needs of its members as it assumes the duties it has been assigned under the law.
DID intervention will be directed towards improving the APIM governance structure and making use of institutional tools to facilitate implementation of the action plan in order to build capacity to promote the microfinance sector effectively and support the fight against poverty.
The assistance provided to Burkina Faso will be carried out with financial support from the Deployment for Democratic Development mechanism (DDD) financed by the Canadian International Development Agency (CIDA).
DID is currently active in twenty countries in Africa, Latin America, the Caribbean and Europe. DID works in partnership with the Canadian International Development Agency, the Inter-American Development Bank, the World Bank and many other multilateral organizations.

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