In this article from Le Figaro, Anne Cheyvialle describes the rise of the Burkinabe agricultural processing company Agroserv, now the leading player in the maize value chain in Burkina Faso and on its way to becoming one of the most important players in West Africa, and how I&P, through its various financing and support vehicles, has contributed to this growth.
As I&P celebrates its 20th year of activity, the team is pleased to present its "Manifesto for the financing and support of entrepreneurship in Africa.
Based on 20 years of learning, entrepreneurial adventures, successes as well as failures and challenges, this manifesto aims to share with you the five best practices or core approaches that we believe are essential if we want to accomplish our mission to serve African entrepreneurs.
Launch of the I&P Digital Energy program, news from the portfolio and local funds, etc. Discover the latest news of I&P in our newsletter n°38!
In summary:
⇒ An editorial signed by Evelyne Dioh SIMPA, Executive Director of WIC Capital;
I&P has specialized for 20 years in financing and supporting SMEs in Sub-Saharan Africa. Although our activities have gradually expanded (seed financing, consulting, training, etc.), private equity remains I&P's core business. The issue of exits is integral to the private equity business model.
For the International Women's Rights Day, I&P evaluated its gender policy on the basis of the annual report of the Deloitte & France Invest "Talents & Diversity" Commission, which aims to promote and encourage the role of women and gender diversity in the Capital Investment business.
Since its creation in 2016, the online platform Afrikrea has been promoting African-inspired fashion and crafts (clothing, accessories, decoration, etc.)
Afrikrea offers customers the chance to buy African creations online under the best conditions. However the originality and added value of its approach lies above all in the support and the provision of sales management tools to designers.
Since 2020, this service offer is accessible on a second platform, ANKA, and works on a subscription basis. ANKA is an all-in-one solution that allows any African seller (and not only fashion designers) to sell and ship their products worldwide and get paid quickly through international and local payment systems.
Currently, Afrikrea federates a community of 7,400 sellers present in 47 African countries and offers a wide range of products with more than 120,000 available references to more than 200,000 users and 60,000 buyers in over 150 countries.
The entrepreneurs
Afrikrea is led by a team of 4 promoters: Moulaye Tabouré (CEO), Kadry Diallo (CMO), Luc Perussault Diallo (CTO) and Guillaume Darnaudet (CFO), all with complementary profiles in auditing, IT, project management and finance.
Having grown up in Bamako (Mali) before moving to France for their studies, co-founders Moulaye Tabouré and Kadry Diallo realized that African handmade products were as rare as highly prized and valuable.
As for Luc Perussault Diallo, the company's CTO, he has over 20 years of experience in marketplaces and e-commerce. Guillaume Darnaudet joined the Afrikrea adventure in 2018 as CFO and shareholder, after a position as financial manager in a construction company in Ivory Coast.
Partnership with I&P
I&P is committed to working with Afrikrea to support the company in:
• Strengthening its technological and marketing team in order to ensure a better offer of tools and services and to offer the best possible support to sellers
• Expanding its geographical scope
Expected Impacts
• Creation of economic opportunities for African creators by reducing barriers to accessing large markets
• Job creation: over 50% job growth during the investment period
• Strong impact on gender equality: 80% of the marketplace's sellers are women
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