Africa Business Communities
by Bob Koigi
International Finance Corporation, a sister organization of the World Bank, and Groupe Crédit Agricole du Maroc (GCAM), a major Moroccan bank, have signed an agreement to help farmers and agribusiness companies gain access to modern equipment, part of an effort to support the country’s agriculture industry.
IFC will advise the bank’s planned subsidiary, CAM Leasing, as it designs its strategy, business model, and customer value proposition in order to reach out to farmers across the country. CAM Leasing will focus on several sectors, including agriculture, where it will provide products oriented towards farmers and agribusinesses.
It will benefit from IFC’s expertise and from its Africa Leasing Facility to develop its strategy and define leasing products that will suit the needs of Moroccan farmers. Adding leasing products and services to the offering will benefit GCAM’s customers by leveraging this new source of financing to modernize their equipment and production facilities.
GCAM serves 2 million clients spread out in the country, half of whom are located in rural areas.
More than a third of all Moroccans rely on farming for their livelihoods and agriculture is responsible for 13 percent of the country’s gross domestic product. Yet many small-hold farmers, who own 80 percent of farm-related businesses, often lack access to financing and leasing services.
“Leasing can help local businesses grow by providing access to finance without the collateral required for traditional financing,” said Garth Bedford, IFC Advisory Services Manager for the Financial Institutions Group in the Middle East and North Africa. “Modern equipment can help small farms become more productive and boost profits, helping Morocco’s agriculture sector modernize and grow sustainably.”
Over the past 40 years, IFC has supported 240 leasing projects in 60 countries and helped set up leasing companies in over 30 countries.
This project was made possible with the support of the MSME Technical Assistance Facility in MENA, a joint initiative between IFC and the World Bank. The facility is supported by the Canadian Department of Foreign Affairs, Trade, and Development, the Danish International Development Agency, Japan, Switzerland’s State Secretariat for Economic Affairs, and UKaid.
www.creditagricole.ma
www.ifc.org
