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About

    Home About

    We invest in the exponential power of female talent

    Our History

    In Senegal, access to finance for women entrepreneurs is very limited and often restricted to traditional financial mechanisms such as banks and microfinance institutions. Statistics show that 43.9% of Senegalese women entrepreneurs who borrow money do so from relatives and only 3.5% of them use financial institutions to access credit.

    On top of the financial challenges they face, women entrepreneurs are burdened by the lack of platforms that provide them the knowledge and assistance necessary to grow their businesses.

    As a result, women-owned businesses fail to scale, explaining the fact that over 99% of them operate at a small scale.

    Cognizant of the financial, managerial and technical challenges that women entrepreneurs face, and the massive opportunity for growth that these challenges present, a group of Senegalese women in leadership came together to form the Women’s Investment Club (WIC) Sénégal.

    In March 2019, WIC Sénégal launched WIC Capital, the first investment fund to target women-led companies in the francophone West African region.

    WHY INVEST IN WOMEN

    USD 95B

    The cost of gender gap issues is estimated at USD 95 billion in Sub-Saharan Africa, every year.

    USD 320B

    Worldwide, women-led businesses face a $320 billion access to credit gap, although they’re said to have lower non-performing loan rates.

    14%

    In Africa, companies in the top quartile in terms of women representation in executive committees have an EBIT 14% higher than the average.

    90%

    In developing countries, women invest 90% of their income in education, health and food for their children, thus being an efficient vector of economic and social development.

    OUR VISION

    Make national champions emerge, thanks to the triptych:

    • privileged access to modern financial instruments
    • access to business networks
    • access to technical support.

    OUR ENGAGEMENT

    Invest in promising small businesses in the start-up phase in order to foster the development of high-growth SMEs over the long term that will contribute to our countries’ economic expansion.

    OUR VALUES

    • Generosity: taste for challenge and permanent openness
    • Rigor: honest relationships with promoters and excellence in work
    • Commitment: contribution to the economic development of women, Senegal, Africa
    • Innovation: optimal structuring of syndicates and personalization of technical support according to the specific needs of the target.

    Our Approach

    WIC Capital’s objective is to identify and develop a portfolio of promising SMEs that will contribute to the development of the economies in Senegal and West Africa. A portion of these companies will become strong candidates for WIC’s future private equity fund, the Women’s Investment Fund.

    WIC Capital invests between USD 50,000 and USD 250,000 through a mix of debt and equity in companies from all sectors, founded by women, at least 50% owned or run by women, or with a managerial team that is mostly female.

    INVESTMENT

    We invest along with local and global actors through equity and quasi-equity in high-potential women-led businesses.

    TAILORED SUPPORT

    We deliver tailored support to companies in our portfolio to ensure they perform at their fullest potential.

    NETWORK

    We connect entrepreneurs with our business networks and organize networking events, including Industry specific mixers to encourage collaboration and synergies.

    Our People

    Board of Directors

    Thiaba Camara SY

    Chair

    Thiaba Camara SY is the founder and former Managing Partner of Deloitte Senegal which she left two years ago to dedicate herself to capital investment activities. She is the Treasurer and co-founder of WIC Senegal. She also chairs the Board and Investment Committee of WIC CAPITAL

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    Amie Ndiaye SOW

    Director

    Amie Ndiaye SOW is the Director of Corporate and Institutional Banking, at United Bank for Africa Plc. She was formerly the Regional Director for West Africa at the bank. She has over two decades of banking experience, spanning business development, risk management, and broader executive management functions.

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    Ndeye Madjiguène SOCK

    Director

    Ndeye Madjiguene SOCK is Director of the Dalberg offices in Francophone Africa. At Dalberg, she is in charge of the gender strategic line. She serves as President of WIC Senegal, which she co-founded. She is also co-founder of Impact Hub Dakar, a startup hub, and the founder of Layu, a brand that promotes local products.

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    Fatimatou Zahra DIOP

    Director

    Fatimatou Zahra DIOP is the co-founder and Vice President of the Board of Directors of Afrivac. She is the first woman to become Secretary General of the Central Bank of West African States (BCEAO), where she was responsible for the successful management of the eight member countries. She is a member of WIC SENEGAL.

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    Investment Committee

    Thiaba Camara SY

    Certified Chartered Accountant

    Thiaba Camara SY is the founder and former Managing Partner of Deloitte Senegal which she left two years ago to dedicate herself to capital investment activities. She is the Treasurer and co-founder of WIC Senegal. She also chairs the Board and Investment Committee of WIC CAPITAL

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    Barthélémy FAYE

    Lawyer, Partner at Cleary Gottlieb Steen & Hamilton LLP

    Barthélémy Faye is a lawyer practicing in Paris and New York. He is a partner at international law firm Cleary Gottlieb Steen & Hamilton LLP. He specializes in corporate and financial matters and Africa-related transactions, including private equity and M&A transactions, project finance (infrastructure, mining and energy) and advisory services to states and governments.

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    Dédée Ba Guèye

    Entrepreneur, CEO of Technologies Services

    Dédée Ba Gueye is the founder and CEO of Technologies Services, a Senegalese company in the medical technology sector. She was the President of Réseau Entreprendre, an association of business leaders supporting young entrepreneurs, and is a member of WIC SENEGAL. 

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    Ndeye Astou KEBE

    Chief Risk Officer, FONGIP

    Ndeye Astou Kebe is Chief Risk Officer at FONGIP, a Senegalese guarantee fund that supports Small and Medium Businesses. She has several years of experience in investments, both as a Risk Analyst and an Investment Analyst.

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    Diaka SALL

    Lead Agriculture, Mastercard Foundation

    Diaka Sall is Lead Agriculture at the Mastercard Foundation. She was the West Africa Regional Manager for Root Capital, supporting agribusinesses in access to finance and financial management training. She has more than fifteen years of experience in investments.

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    Management Team

    Evelyne Dioh SIMPA

    Executive Director

    Evelyne Dioh SIMPA is the Executive Director of WIC Capital. She is an experienced investment professional who joined WIC Capital from FONSIS, Senegal’s sovereign wealth fund, where she was responsible for managing investments in industry, energy, agriculture and other sectors. She formerly worked at the General Inspection of the Société Générale Group. She holds a Master’s degree in Management and M.Sc. in Management Control from EDHEC Business School in France.

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    Désiré DZILAN

    Junior Investment Officer

    Désiré DZILAN is a Junior Investment Officer. He has 4 years of experience in the financial sector including 2 years in investments in Africa. Désiré joined WIC Capital from AFIG Funds, a Private Equity Fund Manager with USD 262 million in assets under management, where he was covering the real estate, edible oil, beverages and pension fund industries. Désiré holds a master’s degree in Financial Management and Accounting from CESAG (Senegal).

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    Join Us

      WIC Capital is the first mechanism to provide suitable financing and support to women owned MSMEs in Senegal and West Africa. We aim to develop entrepreneurship and promote female leadership.

      CONTACT INFO

      contact@wic-capital.net
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