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Ecobank Group and Proparco have finalized a €10m trade finance guarantee designed to support Small and Medium-sized Enterprises (SMEs) in Africa, with a focus on strengthening supply chains and boosting local production.
The agreement, announced during the opening day of the Africa Financial Summit 2025, allocates the facility to Ecobank Chad. The funds will help businesses in the country import essential raw materials that are not readily available in the local market.
The initiative is part of the Food & Agriculture Resilience Mission (FARM), launched in 2022 by France in collaboration with the European Union, the G7, and the African Union. FARM aims to enhance food security and support vulnerable economies facing supply gaps.
It also aligns with the Choose Africa programme led by the AFD Group, which includes Proparco. The programme provides financing and advisory support to African micro-enterprises, SMEs, and start-ups through local financial partners.
Ecobank Group CEO, Jeremy Awori, said the partnership reinforces efforts to support economic recovery and sustainable development in Chad.
“By improving access to key raw materials, we are helping drive local industrial growth, food security, and value creation across the continent,” he noted.
Proparco’s Deputy CEO, Djalal Khimdjee, added that integrating Ecobank Chad into the trade finance programme will enable more businesses to participate in regional and global value chains.
He highlighted that this brings the total volume of trade finance guarantees provided to the Ecobank Group since 2018 to €125m.
The facility is expected to strengthen local businesses, improve manufacturing capacity, and contribute to long-term economic resilience in Chad and the broader region.
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