WIC Capital: Helping women-led businesses thrive in West Africa

FSDAi Nyala Facility provided a $1 million investment to WIC Capital, the first fund in Francophone West Africa dedicated to women-led businesses. This investment enabled WIC Capital to expand its portfolio to include high-potential SMEs of any age and attract further funding, including from the Dutch government. WIC Capital combines financial support with technical assistance, mentoring, and training in leadership, accounting, and marketing. Examples of impact include Mburu, a Senegalese bakery that grew its annual revenue tenfold and increased its staff from 15 to 50 employees, and Arbre de Vie Group, which established a new cosmetics lab and is preparing for international expansion.

• In Senegal, women-led small businesses represent over 20% of the market, which is 30% above the global average, yet only 3.5% of women entrepreneurs in the country have access to formal finance.
• A $1 million investment from the FSDAi Nyala Facility in 2023 allowed WIC Capital to expand its scope from businesses under five years old to high-potential SMEs of any age, while also attracting additional funding from the Dutch government.
• WIC Capital's integrated approach of providing financial support and non-financial technical assistance has led to significant growth for Senegalese firms; for instance, the bakery Mburu increased its annual revenue tenfold and grew its workforce from 15 to 50 employees.

APA

FSD Africa (2025). WIC Capital: Helping women-led businesses thrive in West Africa. https://fsdafrica.org/impact-stories/wic-capital-helping-women-led-businesses-thrive-in-west-africa/

Chicago

FSD Africa. WIC Capital: Helping women-led businesses thrive in West Africa. 2025. https://fsdafrica.org/impact-stories/wic-capital-helping-women-led-businesses-thrive-in-west-africa/.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |author=FSD Africa |title=WIC Capital: Helping women-led businesses thrive in West Africa |date=30 October 2025 |url=https://fsdafrica.org/impact-stories/wic-capital-helping-women-led-businesses-thrive-in-west-africa/ |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{fsdafrica2025wic, author = {{FSD Africa}}, title = {{WIC Capital: Helping women-led businesses thrive in West Africa}}, institution = {FSD Africa}, year = {2025}, month = oct, url = {https://fsdafrica.org/impact-stories/wic-capital-helping-women-led-businesses-thrive-in-west-africa/}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }