Proparco and Ecobank Group have signed a €10 million trade finance guarantee agreement to support Small and Medium-sized Enterprises (SMEs) in Africa, with a focus on enhancing industrialisation and food security in Chad.
The agreement, announced during the opening of the Africa Financial Summit 2025, is aimed at enabling Ecobank Chad to finance imports of critical raw materials needed for local production and value creation.
According to a joint statement, the initiative targets supply gaps in Chad’s domestic market and forms part of the Food & Agriculture Resilience Mission (FARM) launched in 2022 by France in partnership with the European Union, the G7, and the African Union. FARM seeks to strengthen food security across vulnerable African nations through improved access to agricultural inputs and value-chain development.
The facility also falls under the Choose Africa programme managed by the AFD Group, which includes Agence Française de Développement (AFD), Proparco, and Expertise France. The programme provides financing and technical support to African startups, micro-enterprises, and MSMEs at various stages of their growth through local financial partners.
Ecobank Group Chief Executive Officer, Jeremy Awori, said the renewed collaboration with Proparco underscores their shared goal of driving economic resilience across Africa. “By facilitating access to essential raw materials, we are supporting local industrialisation, food security, and value creation on the continent,” he said. Awori added that Ecobank would continue leveraging its pan-African network and Ecobank International in France to strengthen trade financing and risk management for sustainable growth.
Proparco Deputy Chief Executive Officer, Djalal Khimdjee, said the new deal would expand opportunities for local businesses in Chad to participate in international trade. “This partnership will enable local businesses to import raw materials and become part of the global value chain to better serve their communities,” he said.
Since 2018, Proparco and Ecobank have co-developed a series of trade finance programmes across Africa, with total guarantees now amounting to €125 million.
For small and medium-sized enterprises, especially those in manufacturing and agribusiness, the new facility could ease access to essential imports, reduce production bottlenecks, and improve competitiveness. It also reflects growing international support for African-led efforts to strengthen food systems and promote self-sustaining local industries.
