The Grameen Credit Agricole Microfinance Foundation (GCAMF), a Luxembourg-based financial service provider for microfinance institutions (MFIs) and social business projects, recently reported to MicroCapital that it has distributed the second tranche of a three-year loan of EUR 500,000 (USD 675,000) to Chamroeun, a Cambodian MFI that offers savings, loans and microinsurance [1]. The loan to Chamroeun will be distributed over a three-year period. GCAMF increased its equity holding in Chamroeun to approximately 20 percent in late June, 2013. Additionally, GCAMF has loaned EUR 200,000 (USD 271, 800) towards debt coverage and has acquired a 20 percent stake amounting to EUR 142,000 (USD 193,000) in Senegalaise des Filieres Alimentaires SA (SFA), a Senegal-based company that produces mainly rice products [1]. GCAMF’s investment in SFA allegedly is intended for refining the industrial processing capacity of paddy rice. Further information on the transactions has not been released.
Chamroeun runs as a social business that aims to help microentrepreneurs improve their management skills through self-confidence training and business counseling. SFA produces mainly white rice from paddies grown by small farmers in the Senegal River Valley and serves mostly wholesale customers located in the country’s capital of Dakar.
As of 2012, Chamroeun reports USD 6.2 million in assets and has approximately 41,000 borrowers, of which a majority were women. Financial information for SFA is not available. As of December 2012, GCAMF reported total assets of EUR 50 million (USD 67.9 million).
By Anesa Kratovac, Research Associate
About Chamroeun
Chamroeun is a microfinance institution (MFI) that was established in Cambodia in 1995. The organization’s mission is to help low-income people in urban areas prepare for unexpected expenses by providing savings, loans and microinsurance. The MFI also engages micro- and small entrepreneurs in skills trainings. As of the same year, Chamroeun reported USD 6.2 million in assets and had approximately 41,000 borrowers, of which a majority were women.
About Senegalaise des Filieres Alimentaires SA (SFA)
Founded in 2011 by Durabilis, a Belgian impact investment company specializing in the development of value chains in the agro-food sector, Senegalaise des Filieres Alimentaires S.A. (SFA) is a Sengal-based company that produces mainly white rice, under the brand name Terral, from paddies grown by small farmers in the Senegal River Valley, who are supervised and accompanied by SFA technicians. As of 2013, the company’s customers are mainly wholesalers located in the country’s capital of Dakar. In 2012, a total of 700 farmers were supported by SFA and approximately 626 tons of rice were sold. The company does not report its financial data and this information is otherwise unavailable.
About Grameen Credit Agricole Microfinance Foundation (GCAMF)
The Grameen Credit Agricole Microfinance Foundation (GCAMF) was founded in Luxembourg in 2008 by Crédit Agricole SA, a French retail bank, and Grameen Trust (GT), a nonprofit microfinance organization affiliated with Grameen Bank of Bangladesh. GCAMF offers financing products to microfinance institutions (MFIs), focusing on MFIs that prioritize rural development, transparency, consumer protection and serving women. As of December 31, 2011, GCAMF reports reported total assets of GCAMF reported fixed total assets of EUR 50 million (USD 67.9 million)
Sources and Additional Resources:
[1] Information Provided to MicroCapital by The Grameen Credit Agricole Microfinance Foundation.
MicroCapital Article, May 29, 2013, “Grameen Crédit Agricole Microfinance Foundation Loans $800k to Soro Yiriwaso of Mali, Viator of Azerbaijan,” https://www.microcapital.org/microcapital-brief-grameen-credit-agricole-microfinance-foundation-loans-800k-to-soro-yiriwaso-of-mali-viator-of-azerbaijan/
MicroCapital Article, May 23, 2013, “Grameen Credit Agricole Microfinance Foundation (GCAMF) Disburses Tranches of $1.8m in Loans to African Microfinance Institutions GRAINE of Burkina Faso, CAURIE of Senegal,” https://www.microcapital.org/microcapital-brief-grameen-credit-agricole-microfinance-foundation-gcamf-disburses-tranches-of-1-8m-in-loans-to-african-microfinance-institutions-graine-of-burkina-faso-caurie-of-senegal/
MicroCapital Article, May 20, 2013, “Grameen Credit Agricole Microfinance Foundation (GCAMF) Loans $370k to Microfinance Institution Chamroeun of Cambodia,”https://www.microcapital.org/microcapital-brief-grameen-credit-agricole-microfinance-foundation-gcamf-loans-370k-to-microfinance-institution-chamroeun-of-cambodia/
MicroCapital Article, March 15, 2013, “Agence Francaise de Developpement (AFD) to Guarantee Grameen Credit Agricole Microfinance Foundation (GCAMF) Loans, Largely in Sub-Saharan Africa,” https://www.microcapital.org/microcapital-brief-agence-francaise-de-developpement-afd-to-guarantee-grameen-credit-agricole-microfinance-foundation-gcamf-loans-largely-in-sub-saharan-africa/
MicroCapital Universe Profile: Chamroeun, https://www.microcapital.org/microfinanceuniverse/tiki-index.php?page=CHAMROEUN+MICROFINANCE
MicroCapital Universe Profile: Grameen Credit Agricole Microfinance Foundation (GCAMF),https://www.microcapital.org/microfinanceuniverse/tiki-index.php?page=Grameen+Credit+Agricole+Microfinance+Foundation
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