The Project to Support Financial Inclusion and Access to Finance for Small and Medium-Sized Enterprises (PAIF-SME) has reached a major milestone in six years of existence. Last Friday, the performances of PAIF-PME were presented during a press lunch in Ouagadougou

The coordinator of the PAIF-PME project, Kaongo Wilfried Séraphin Kientéga has revealed the most significant results of this project, in particular the financial support of 162 project leaders, 75% of whom are women, for a total amount of 2.676 billion CFA francs. Indeed, the PAIF-PME responds to the need to reduce inequalities in access to financial services in Burkina Faso, especially for small and medium-sized enterprises, women, farmers and marginalized populations. This project aims in particular to facilitate access to credit, and promote digital payments, in a context where financial inclusion remains an essential lever for economic growth and the fight against poverty.

Among the results achieved by the PAIF-PME after several years of implementation, we note the financial support of 162 project leaders, 75% of whom are women, for a total amount of 2.676 billion CFA francs. This performance of the PAIF-PME is the result of two editions of a national business plan competition organized as part of the project. For this initiative, in fact, it was a question of identifying innovative entrepreneurial ideas, supporting them and strengthening their economic viability

Among the winners, women entrepreneurs won the majority of places, according to the project coordinator, Kaongo Wilfried Séraphin Kientéga, who alone benefits from 2 billion CFA francs. According to the latter, “this project is the concrete expression of the government's commitment to promote sustainable financial inclusion in Burkina Faso, the digitalization of payments, financial education, the protection of consumers of financial services, the increase of access to credit for SMEs and farmers, an increase in access to credit for SMEs and farmers, a crucial issue for our economic and social development”.

The project is based on four components that structure its action in favor of financial inclusion. The first component aims to increase the use of transaction accounts by supporting the digitization of government payments and the digital transformation of microfinance services. It is endowed with 28.3 million USD. The second, worth $7.7 million, is dedicated to strengthening institutional capacities, in particular those of the microfinance supervisory authority, the FAARF, and to improving the protection of financial customers. The third seeks to increase access to credit for farmers, SMEs and women entrepreneurs, by acting on both the supply and demand of credit. It is endowed with 54.5 million USD. The last, financed to the tune of 8.5 million USD, covers the activities of management, monitoring and evaluation of the project, thus ensuring its effective management and the measurement of its results.