The Board of Directors of the African Development Bank (AfDB) has approved a loan of 8.23 billion CFA Francs to Côte d'Ivoire to enhance the competitiveness of businesses, with a particular focus on small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), including those owned by women.
This financial support, provided through the African Development Fund—the concessional financing arm of the AfDB—aims to assist in the implementation of the first phase of the Support Programme for the Improvement of the Business Climate for Structural Transformation of the Ivorian Economy (PACA-CI).
This program aims to eliminate barriers to improving the business climate, fostering inclusive and resilient growth while ensuring decent jobs and sustainable incomes for the population, the note highlights.
Additionally, it seeks to enhance access to financing and guarantee mechanisms, with a particular focus on supporting women-owned micro-enterprises and SMEs, the text underscores.
The strategy aims to increase the added value of national production and boost the market share of local companies in a secure environment. Additionally, the programme seeks to improve the overall business climate to attract both foreign and local direct investments.
To achieve these objectives, the programme is structured around three components: support for private sector competitiveness, access to domestic and export markets, and programme management.
The PACA-CI programme is expected to bolster the competitiveness of the Ivorian private sector by facilitating access to finance and financial services and promoting development tools that enable SMEs to access both national and export markets.
The initiative is geared towards supporting the Ivorian private sector's participation in the AfCFTA.
The programme covers the entire country, including the digital activities carried out by the Côte d'Ivoire Investment Promotion Centre and the Agence Côte d'Ivoire PME for attracting investment.
Additionally, the programme is expected to facilitate financial inclusion, digital access for SMEs, and the transition of businesses from the informal to the formal economy. It aims to help 30,000 economic agents achieve entrepreneur status through this transition.
A significant aspect of the programme includes supporting national awareness-raising and training initiatives focused on digital financial inclusion, targeting rural populations, women, and young people across Côte d'Ivoire's 31 regions.
The programme also plans to provide support to the SME Guarantee Fund, which could benefit 3,600 SMEs. Additionally, it will back the implementation of public-private dialogue in regional economic hubs to foster collaboration and growth.
As of 30 November 2021, the AfDB Group's active portfolio in Côte d'Ivoire comprised 44 operations, with total financial commitments of USD 2.73 billion. The sectoral distribution highlights a focus on transport infrastructure (41.5%), followed by energy (22.6%), agriculture (17.1%), governance (10%), social initiatives (4.7%), finance (2.1%), and water and sanitation (2%).