Commerçante devant son étal, en Guinée

Wakili

In Guinea, Wakili supports women and men in remote rural areas to grow their income-generating activities and build lasting stability for their families.

  • Economic and social inclusion
  • Sustainable agriculture and food safety
  • Adapting to climate change
  • Women's emancipation
  • Guinea

Wakili, at a glance

Founded in 2016, Wakili is the only social microfinance institution in Guinea to deliver all its services directly within communities, including the most remote. It supports micro-entrepreneurs, most of them women, with credit, savings, training and technical agricultural support. Rural communities now make up two thirds of the people it supports (figures: 2025).

  • 23,104 entrepreneurs supported

  • €1.1M loan portfolio

  • 1,419 individual agricultural advisory visits

Making a living without access to capital or training

Agricultrice cultivant son champ avec des outils manuels en Guinée
In rural Guinea, farming remains the main source of income for families.

In Guinea, families on the lowest incomes, women in particular, have often had limited access to education. Stable salaried employment therefore remains out of reach for many. To make a living, many turn to small-scale trade, a workshop or farming. But without access to capital or training, it is difficult to grow this activity and move beyond a subsistence economy. Wakili responds to this need for financial, technical and human support, reaching the most isolated areas.

Key context figures:

  • 179th out of 193 countries on the Human Development Index (UNDP, 2025)
  • 44% of the population lives below the national poverty line (World Bank, 2018)
  • 61% of the rural population depends on farming for their livelihood (World Bank, 2024)
Commerçante accompagnée par Wakili devant son étal, en Guinée

I grew up farming and trading with my parents. I joined Wakili and relaunched my business. Today, I sell 2 tonnes of rice a month and 5 bags of sugar every two weeks. Thanks to the training, I learned to manage my money better and to save. My business now lets me offer small loans to my own customers in turn. My next goal is to rebuild the roof of my house and open my own shop.

Mamadama S. Shopkeeper, in Guinea

Local support that delivers results

A comprehensive service, delivered within communities.
Wakili offers financial and socio-economic services designed for people in the most isolated areas: unsecured credit with no collateral required, a fee-free interest-bearing savings account, training, individual support and technical agricultural advice. All these services are delivered in person, within communities, including the most remote.

Concrete results on the ground in 2025.
Rural coverage has grown stronger: 6 of the 8 branches are now in rural areas, and 51% of loan value financed agricultural activities. In the Moussayah region, 200 women entrepreneurs completed a literacy programme to better manage their savings and their business.

An institution looking ahead.
Wakili is continuing its expansion, mapping community groups to reach more women and men in the most isolated areas. At the same time, the institution has committed to a climate action plan and to preventing gender-based violence and inequality, with the ambition of becoming a model organisation on these issues in Guinea.

  • Commerçante devant son étal en Guinée
    A shopkeeper supported by Wakili sells her goods at her stall
  • Une femme présente un support de formation à des participantes lors d'une formation du programme Wa
    Role-play, discussion, visual aids: the training works without relying on written materials.

Lasting change over time

Four years after joining the programme, families supported by Wakili have transformed their day-to-day lives.

  • 89% of people supported report improved living conditions

  • +85% net monthly income

School canteens supplied by local farming

 

Femmes en Guinée servant un repas aux enfants dans le cadre des cantines scolaires de Wakili
Six cooks per school prepare meals every day, using produce bought from local farmers.

Since October 2024, two primary schools in the Moussayah sub-prefecture have had a canteen. Meals are prepared each day by cooks from the local community, using produce bought as far as possible from farmers supported by Wakili. The project addresses two needs at once: balanced meals for pupils, and steady outlets for local produce.

A village management committee runs each canteen, 8 farmers have signed supply contracts, and 2 boreholes provide clean water for children. Over the 2025-2026 school year, 44,770 meals were served to 476 pupils, and enrolment at the two schools rose by 72% since 2023-2024.

Our approach

Wakili, a local social microfinance institution, works directly with communities. Entrepreneurs du Monde supports it through its technical advisors until it becomes fully self-sufficient.

  • Wakili delivers all its services in person within communities, even the most remote. It offers individual credit, regular interest-bearing savings, training and individual support, along with technical agricultural advice and food security and literacy initiatives.

  • Technical advisors from Entrepreneurs du Monde strengthen the team’s capacities: governance, legal compliance, strategy, social performance measurement, management systems and fundraising. This support continues until the institution becomes fully self-sufficient.

  • Wakili is the only social microfinance institution in Guinea to offer unsecured credit with no collateral required and a fee-free savings account. It has committed to a climate action plan and to preventing gender-based violence and inequality.

They support Wakili

Logo de l'Agence Française de Développement, partenaire d'Entrepreneurs du Monde
Logo de Whole Foods Market Foundation , partenaire d'Entrepreneurs du Monde
Logo de la Fondation Dewavrin Healthcare , partenaire d'Entrepreneurs du Monde
Logo de XP Metal Detectors, partenaire d'Entrepreneurs du Monde
Logo de la Fondation Deloitte, partenaire d'Entrepreneurs du Monde
Logo de Microfinance Solidaire

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