Yaoundé, Cameroon, June 29, 2023 — To increase access to finance for micro, small, and medium-sized enterprises (MSMEs) in Cameroon, with a focus on supporting women-owned businesses, IFC today announced a partnership with Crédit Communautaire d'Afrique Bank (CCA-Bank), a leading financial institution in the country.

An IFC loan equivalent of $16.6 million in Central African CFA Francs will allow CCA-Bank to scale up its lending to MSMEs in Cameroon, including those still recovering from the impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic. At least 25 percent of the financing is earmarked specifically for women-owned businesses. CCA-Bank is the only bank in the Economic and Monetary Community of Central Africa region that will soon be led by a female CEO and two female deputy CEOs, making it an example of women in leadership in the region.

IFC will also provide advisory services to help CCA-Bank sustain its ambitious growth plans.

Although MSMEs are a key engine of private sector growth in Cameroon, accounting for nearly 100 percent of formally registered enterprises and almost 60 percent of the country's formal employment, access to finance remains a challenge. Underserved groups such as women-owned businesses face even stricter credit constraints.

"CCA-Bank welcomes the partnership with IFC, especially as it falls within our strategic plan to robustly address two important segments of the market at the same time and in a significant way: MSMEs and Women Banking," said Marguerite Fonkwen Atanga, appointed managing director of CCA-Bank.

"Cognizant of the important role women play in the local economy, CCA-Bank, through its 'Women Banking Program' and in collaboration with IFC, will be positioning itself as the bank of choice for women currently unserved and under-served by the formal financial mainstream. The initiative therefore aims at empowering and financing Cameroonian female-led enterprises and entrepreneurs, as to drive development and economic growth. As for MSMEs that make up the backbone of the Cameroonian economy, the necessity to lead the way for their expansion cannot be too emphasized."

"Limited access to finance, especially for women-owned businesses, is a critical constraint to economic and social development in Cameroon," said Dahlia Khalifa, IFC's Regional Director for Central Africa, Liberia, Nigeria, and Sierra Leone. "IFC is proud to partner with CCA-Bank to help address critical challenges in Cameroon's MSME finance market thus supporting broader economic growth and job creation."

As part of the partnership, CCA-Bank will join IFC's Global Trade Finance Program (GTFP). By joining the program, CCA-Bank will gain access to a network of correspondent banks, enhancing its ability to meet the financing needs of MSMEs.

IFC's investment is supported by the International Development Association's Private Sector Window's Local Currency Facility. The project is also supported by the Women Entrepreneurs Finance Initiative ("We-Fi").

IFC has been ramping up its support to financial institutions in Cameroon that support economic recovery by increasing financial inclusion of MSMEs, including women-owned or led businesses. This new partnership underscores IFC's commitment to support responsible private sector-led growth and job creation in countries affected by fragility and conflict.