The United States Government has provided three co-investment grants totaling more than 780 million francs CFA ($1.4m) through the United States Agency for International Development (USAID). The grants leverage more than 4.6 billion CFA ($8.3m) in private resources, resulting in a total of 5.4 billion CFA ($9.7m) in public and private investment in three promising Senegalese companies: Club Tiossane, an online fresh-grocery delivery service, and Biosene and Enterprise Aissatou Gaye, two women-led food companies (EAG).
Investment In Club Tiossane
The USAID co-investment will be used by Club Tiossane to expand its activities, including the construction of a cold storage and packing facility to boost its food storage capacity. The company will also purchase 14 delivery trucks to enhance its weekly home delivery capacity from 1,200 to 4,000.
Read also:The Latest Tax Free Destination For Foreign Businesses In Africa Is Zanzibar. Here’s How It Works
Club Tiossane will grow its pool of producers to 500 by forming supply-chain agreements with 400 additional small-scale farmers in Senegal to meet market demands. The organization will also assist these producers in improving the quality and quantity of their output, as well as identifying market opportunities, diversifying their product lines, and expanding into new markets.
The firm and USAID have invested a total of around 1.1 billion CFA francs ($1.9m).
Investment In Biosene
Biosene, a woman-led food firm that distributes goods derived from locally sourced raw materials, will use USAID money to bolster its supply chains in Senegal and the rest of West Africa, which were hit hard by the COVID-19 pandemic.
Biosene will buy 340 metric tons of semi-finished products and raw materials from 6,600 farmers and processors, including millet, fonio, baobab fruits and powder, hibiscus, moringa, and white beans.
Read also:Why EchoVC Made Its First AI Investment In Kenyan Startup KOSA.ai
USAID funds will be used to develop an e-commerce platform to help Biosene better promote its products, hire 39 new employees (22 of whom will be women), improve the performance of all 96 employees, and update all Biosene business procedures and procedure manuals. A processing and storage facility will be designed and built using Biosene resources. Biosene and USAID have invested a total of 1.2 billion francs CFA ($2.1m) in this project.
Investment In Enterprise Aïssatou Gaye
Enterprise Assatou Gaye (EAG), a rice producing enterprise in the Saint Louis region’s Ross-Béthio area, will use the new funds to help overcome obstacles in working capital, agricultural consulting services, and processing capacity.
The total investment in EAG for growth is estimated to be over 3.2 billion francs CFA ($5.8m). Due to COVID-19 transit constraints that severely limited Senegal’s access to imported rice, the co-investment is planned to double EAG’s processing capacity and respond to increased demand for rice.
Investing in EAG will also enhance rice production, contributing to food security in the Ross-Béthio region while also serving as a model of female entrepreneurship in an usually male-dominated sector.
Read also:SWIFT Launches , Fast, Cost-effective Service for Low-Value Cross-Border Payments.
These three USAID co-investments, made through the West Africa Trade & Investment Hub, show how the US government encourages entrepreneurship in the region. As USAID commemorates its 60th anniversary and six decades of partnership with Senegal, initiatives like these demonstrate how we can collaborate to strengthen the country’s private sector and entrepreneurship, particularly among small and medium-sized businesses.
Senegalese startups USAID Senegalese startups USAID
Charles Rapulu Udoh
Charles Rapulu Udoh is a Lagos-based lawyer who has advised startups across Africa on issues such as startup funding (Venture Capital, Debt financing, private equity, angel investing etc), taxation, strategies, etc. He also has special focus on the protection of business or brands’ intellectual property rights ( such as trademark, patent or design) across Africa and other foreign jurisdictions.
He is well versed on issues of ESG (sustainability), media and entertainment law, corporate finance and governance.
He is also an award-winning writer