Agro-food

Volaille du Sahel is a start-up that produces and sells hallal meat (chicken, guinea fowl, chicken derivatives) in Niger.

THE ENTREPRENEURS

Volaille du Sahel was created in 2018 by two associates:

• Harouna Nouhou Abdoulaye: With a Masters degree in business management, he registers years of work experience in telecommunications where he was in charge of marketing and sales management. He then evolved as a zone developer in the Maradi region at Zamani Telecom.                                                                                                                                                                           
• Ibrahim Mamane Laminou: He holds a master's degree in computer science from Abdou Moumouni University in Niamey and a Master's degree in Management of Information Systems from Sun Yat Sen University in Canton, China. 

PARTNERSHIP WITH I&P AND SINERGI 

Volaille du Sahel is supported by Sinergi and I&P through I&P Acceleration in Sahel. The main objective of this project is to increase the company's production capacity, contribute to the improvement of its supply chain and implement a communication strategy.

About Sinergi Niger

SINERGI S.A. is a private investment company created in 2006 and supported by I&P with a group of key individual and institutional shareholders in the Nigerien and international SME support landscape. Headed by Ibrahima Djibo, its objective is to contribute to the economic and social development of Niger through the promotion of entrepreneurship and the development of SMEs. SINERGI S.A. provides the means for entrepreneurs in Niger to achieve their growth projects by providing long-term financing and local support.  → Find out more about Sinergi​

Malakass is a young company whose mission is to contribute to the development of the cassava farming industry in the Atsimo-Andrefana region of Madagascar, thanks to the installation of a standard factory, allowing the transformation of cassava into high quality, bio and fair trade certified flour. The product is intended for both the local and international markets, in particular the major European importers, who are in demand for this high value-added product, which is gluten-free and used in both bakery and pastry-making.Malakass is a young company whose mission is to contribute to the development of the cassava farming industry in the Atsimo-Andrefana region of Madagascar, thanks to the installation of a standard factory, allowing the transformation of cassava into high quality, bio and fair trade certified flour.

The product is intended for both the local and international markets, in particular the major European importers, who are in demand for this high value-added product, which is gluten-free and used in both bakery and pastry-making.

The entrepreneur

Malakass is led by Houssen MEBOBALY, a graduate of INSEEC after a dozen years of study in France. After starting his career at BNP Paribas, he returned to Madagascar in 2019 to start his own business.

Struck by the under-valued potential of the cassava industry in his native region, while cassava flour consumption is rapidly increasing in Europe, he decided to add value by transforming it into high quality flour.

Partnership with I&P

I&P committed alongside with Malakass to:

• Fund the acquisition of the production line and the supply vans
• Fund the construction of the plant
• Fund the working capital requirements and ensure a minimum cash flow for the company during its first two years
• Support the company in structuring the supply through the research of subsidies, the implementation of certifications, training and support for producers ...
• Provide strategic and operational support

Read More : Press release

Faso Elevage Bio is a Burkinabe company specialized in the production of breeding materials. This young company has progressively developed five activities aimed at poultry farmers: production and commercialization of chicks and breeding equipment (incubators, cages, brooders, etc.), implementation of a farm monitoring system, rent of livestock buildings and training of poultry farmers on good breeding practices.

THE ENTREPRENEUR

Faso Elevage Bio was created by Abdoul-Wakil Faïçal PALENFO when he was a young student entrepreneur. Before starting his own business, Mr. PALENFO was a livestock consultant for NGOs and companies like Ferm'Afrik. He holds a professional master's degree in animal production from the University of Saint Thomas Aquinas (USTA) in Ouagadougou.

PARTNERSHIP WITH I&P AND SINERGI BURKINA

Faso Elevage Bio is supported by I&P and Sinergi Burkina through I&P Acceleration in Sahel. The support will allow the company to : 

• Strengthen the chick production capacity
• Improve the quality of the egg brooding machines
• Strengthen the company's market presence
• Strengthen the structuring and the management system (SIG)

EXPECTED IMPACTS

• Creation and consolidation of jobs
• Increase the local supply of chicks
• Valuation of local products 
• Establishment of good governance

About Sinergi Burkina

Created in 2014, Sinergi Burkina is the first impact investment fund dedicated to financing and supporting SMEs and start-ups in Burkina Faso. Headed by Job Zongo, Sinergi Burkina is the second investment fund sponsored by Investisseurs & Partenaires as part of the I&P Développement 2 fund. The fund network currently includes a fund in Niger (Sinergi Niger), Côte d'Ivoire (Comoé Capital), Senegal (Teranga Capital) and Madagascar (Miarakap).  → To learn more about Sinergi Burkina​

Based in Limbé, in the west of Cameroon, CassVita is a young company specialized in the production and transformation of cassava. The company produces Watafufu powder, a dish consumed in most regions of Cameroon and Nigeria, and is developing cassava and modified starch-based pastry flour.

THE ENTREPRENEUR

The company is led by two entrepreneurs, Nembu Milton and Pelkins Ajanoh.

Born and raised in Limbe where he did his primary and secondary studies, Nembu Milton went to the Ecole Nationale Supérieur des Travaux Publics from where he graduated as a Public Works Engineer. Before the CassVita adventure, Nembu Miltona previously had a business experience marked by the launch of a restaurant called Mr. Restaurant Chaba.

A graduate of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) and Havard Business School in the United States, Pelkins Ajanoh has received several recognitions for innovation and leadership including the 2015 Guistwhite Scholarship, an academic and leadership award given to only fifteen students in the United State.

PARTNERSHIP WITH I&P

CassVita is supported by I&P through I&P Acceleration in Sahel, funded by the European Union. The funding and support aims to help the company increase its production capacity, improve its supply chain and implement a new marketing strategy.

Kokuma is an industrial unit for processing paddy rice into whole white rice, broken rice and rice bran in Burkina Faso.  It is one of the best paddy rice processors on the Bagré plain, with a daily processing capacity of 30 tons of paddy. The company obtains its paddy from a network of more than 200 producers in some 20 groups.

THE ENTREPRENEUR

Kokuma is an initiative of the diocese of Tenkodogo, represented by Father Jean-Paul Yoda. Before managing Kokuma, he was the manager of the store of the minor seminary of Baskouré for about four years and also conducted personally during his young age, the breeding of pigs and poultry that allowed him to build up small savings to contribute to his schooling. As he likes to repeat, entrepreneurship is not primarily done to get rich, but to improve the living conditions of man and every man.

SINERGI BURKINA'S CONTRIBUTIONS

The company is accompanied by Sinergi Burkina (capital investment).  The partnership aims to :

• Increase qualitatively and quantitatively the company's offer 
• Diversify the customer portfolio 
• Establish the basis for an organizational and accounting structure of the company 
• Create impact through the structuring of strong and organized producers' cooperatives

EXPECTED IMPACTS

• Formalizing and securing jobs 
• Improvement of health and safety measures at work 
• Creation of new jobs 
• Valuation of local products 
• Establishment of good governance 
• Payment of taxes and social contributions

About Sinergi Burkina

Created in 2014, Sinergi Burkina is the first impact investment fund dedicated to financing and supporting SMEs and start-ups in Burkina Faso. Headed by Job Zongo, Sinergi Burkina is the second investment fund sponsored by Investisseurs & Partenaires as part of the I&P Développement 2 fund. The fund network currently includes a fund in Niger (Sinergi Niger), Côte d'Ivoire (Comoé Capital), Senegal (Teranga Capital) and Madagascar (Miarakap).  → To learn more about Sinergi Burkina​

Distrib Concept is a Burkinabe agribusiness start-up that aims to revolutionize the way agricultural products are preserved. Its solution: to dry and then grind leaves and vegetables into spices and broths in order to extend their shelf life beyond one year. The company produces and then markets dried vegetables, spices and instant broths in sticks of 2 to 3 grams marketed under the brand Leila. This ingenious solution allowed the company to finish in second place in 2020 at the Pierre Castel Innovation Award.

THE ENTREPRENEUR

Distrib Concept was created in 2016 by Inoussa Sorgho, a former civil service executive. Holder of a master's degree in Economic Sciences and Management of Enterprises and Organizations (EGEO), his commitment and dynamism, have earned him several laurels:

• Winner of the Castel 2020 prize
• Best Packaging Award at JAAL 2019
• Silver medalist at the Pan-African Mathematics Olympiad 2002

SINERGI BURKINA'S CONTRIBUTIONS

Distrib Concept is supported by Sinergi Burkina through  I&P Acceleration in Sahel whose objectives are :

• Strengthen the annual production capacity
• Strengthen the accounting and Management Information System (MIS)
• Diversify the clientele and products
• Support HACCP certification

EXPECTED IMPACTS

• Formalization and securing of jobs
• Creation of new jobs
• Valuation of local products
• Establishment of good governance
• Payment of taxes and social contributions

About Sinergi Burkina

Created in 2014, Sinergi Burkina is the first impact investment fund dedicated to financing and supporting SMEs and start-ups in Burkina Faso. Headed by Job Zongo, Sinergi Burkina is the second investment fund sponsored by Investisseurs & Partenaires as part of the I&P Développement 2 fund. The fund network currently includes a fund in Niger (Sinergi Niger), Côte d'Ivoire (Comoé Capital), Senegal (Teranga Capital) and Madagascar (Miarakap).  → To learn more about Sinergi Burkina​

Salma is a company specialized in agro-industry. It produces feed for livestock (sheep, cattle, goats) based on fodder, agro-industrial products and minerals.

THE ENTREPRENEUR

Salma was created by Mrs. Nafissa Hamidou ABDOULAYE. She holds a state diploma in midwifery and a higher technician diploma in public health, a bachelor's degree in epidemiology and biostatistics and a master's degree in project management. She benefits from the expertise and permanent technical support of INRAN researchers in the implementation of her project.

ABOUT SINERGI 

SINERGI S.A. is a private investment company created in 2006 and supported by I&P with a group of key individual and institutional shareholders in the Nigerien and international SME support landscape. Headed by Ibrahima Djibo, its objective is to contribute to the economic and social development of Niger through the promotion of entrepreneurship and the development of SMEs. SINERGI S.A. provides the means for entrepreneurs in Niger to achieve their growth projects by providing long-term financing and local support.  → Find out more about Sinergi

ABOUT USAID PROGRAM

Investisseurs & Partenaires and the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) launched in 2016 an innovative acceleration program for start-ups in Niger, Burkina Faso and Senegal. The partnership is designed to support high-potential start-ups and small and medium-sized enterprises in order to facilitate their access to financing in a region where the ecosystem supporting entrepreneurship is still poorly developed. → Click here to find out more

Sahel Délices is a company specialized in the production and marketing of food products (juices, herbal teas, jams, etc.) made from local raw materials from Niger. Juices made from local plants such as bissap or baobab are the company's flagship products.

THE ENTREPRENEUR

Sahel Délices was founded by Ms. Rockya Bachir. She holds a master's degree in management with an option in quality and change and another master's degree in finance and banking from the Institut Supérieur de Management. She received practical training in food processing for "family consumption" in Senegal and is part of the 15th promotion of the UEMOA Talent du Monde program in Brittany.

ABOUT SINERGI

SINERGI S.A. is a private investment company created in 2006 and supported by I&P with a group of key individual and institutional shareholders in the Nigerien and international SME support landscape. Headed by Ibrahima Djibo, its objective is to contribute to the economic and social development of Niger through the promotion of entrepreneurship and the development of SMEs. SINERGI S.A. provides the means for entrepreneurs in Niger to achieve their growth projects by providing long-term financing and local support.  → Find out more about Sinergi

ABOUT PACE PROGRAM 

Investisseurs & Partenaires and the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) launched in 2016 an innovative acceleration program for start-ups in Niger, Burkina Faso and Senegal. The partnership is designed to support high-potential start-ups and small and medium-sized enterprises in order to facilitate their access to financing in a region where the ecosystem supporting entrepreneurship is still poorly developed. → Click here to find out more

Nowelli is a small Senegalese company that specializes in individual and collective catering (catering service and canteen management). Through its various offers, Nowelli provides its customers with healthy and balanced products, with a particular focus on reducing the amount of sugar, salt and fat.

THE ENTREPRENEURS

The company Nowelli was created by two promoters who are : 

• Mrs. Mariama DIENE, passionate about healthy nutrition, she has a degree in International Business from the European Institute of Higher Education and in public policy and development management from Sciences Po. She held several positions in NGOs and financial institutions before devoting herself to her passion, cooking.
• Mrs. Mariama Selly Kane, who has more than 10 years of experience in individual catering and management of company canteens.

CONTRIBUTIONS OF TERANGA CAPITAL

Nowelli has benefited from I&P Acceleration in  Sahel program implemented in Senegal by Teranga Capital:

• To support the company in the development of a new offer for the management of school and company canteens (collective catering)
• To support the company in the strategic reflexion around its positioning and the commercial development of its activities
• To support the company in the reinforcement of its commercial, financial and accounting functions and the maintenance of the quality of its products and services.

ABOUT TERANGA CAPITAL

Teranga Capital is the first impact investment fund dedicated to the financing and support of Senegalese SMEs and start-ups. Headed by Olivier Furdelle, Teranga Capital is the third African fund sponsored by Investisseurs & Partenaires under the I&P Développement 2 program. The network currently includes a fund in Niger (Sinergi Niger), Burkina Faso (Sinergi Burkina), Ivory Coast (Comoé Capital) and Madagascar (Miarakap). → Find out more about Teranga Capital

Syn'el is a company specialized in the artisanal production of sorbets on sticks under the Paletas brand, made from entirely natural juices. In Côte d'Ivoire, Syn'el is the only producer of natural sorbets. The company has 6 flavours according to the seasons and 2 product ranges.

THE ENTREPRENEUR

Syn'el was founded in 2017 by Ella Assié, a young entrepreneur who graduated from the University of South Africa in management and cost accounting after obtaining a certificate in Accountability at the Abidjan School of Information and Management. She has also worked for several years as a consultant, assistant and administrative and financial manager in various organisations.

CONTRIBUTION OF COMOE CAPITAL

The I&P Acceleration in Sahel program, implemented in Côte d'Ivoire by Comoé Capital, will enable Syn'el to relaunch its activities, develop a product marketing strategy and increase its production capacity. The company will also benefit from the support of several consultants who will provide marketing and sales support.

In terms of impact, the company expects to create 9 new jobs by 2022.

ABOUT COMOE CAPITAL

Comoé Capital is the first impact investment fund dedicated to the financing and support of Ivorian SMEs and start-ups. Headed by Issa Sidibé, Comoé Capital is the fifth African fund sponsored by Investisseurs & Partenaires as part of the I&P Développement 2 fund. The fund network currently includes a fund in Niger (Sinergi Niger), Burkina Faso (Sinergi Burkina), Senegal (Teranga Capital) and Madagascar (Miarakap). →Site of Comoé Capital.