4th STAKEHOLDER MEETING HELD IN FRANCE

On 30 January, the Seine-Saint-Denis stakeholders group met for the 4th time in the presence of Aristote Zola from CRESUS, Grégoire Heaulme and Julie Casanova from ADIE, Farid Zahoui from the Banque de France, Marie Charles and Chahrazed Tabti from the County of Seine-Saint-Denis, Mathilde Besançon, Clément Delcourt and Yoan Noguier from Yunus France. This meeting was an opportunity for stakeholders to report on the study carried out by Yunus France with the contribution of Grameen Bank from September to December 2024.

This study aims at providing a snapshot of the current entrepreneurial ecosystem in Seine-Saint-Denis, focusing on the actors, dynamics and opportunities, as well as an analysis of unmet needs. The goal is to promote economic inclusion and a sustainable entrepreneurial dynamic, based on a combination of innovative microfinance and formalisation schemes tailored to the specific characteristics of the area.

Meetings were held with 15 actors involved in promoting entrepreneurship and financing: the Chamber of Commerce and Industry, the Chamber of Crafts, Adie, Cresus, France Active Métropole, Banque de France, BNP Paribas, Cités Coop, Ensemble pour l'Emploi, GRDR Migration Citoyenneté, Développement, La Ruche, Archipel & CO, Linklusion, Positiv. Also A focus group was also organised with 6 local entrepreneurs.

The study shows that while the region already has a network of actors involved in supporting entrepreneurs, there are still gaps, particularly in terms of access to finance and support for formalisation. These are at the heart of the needs that need to be addressed to complement existing programmes and maximise their impact. In this context, the Nobin programme developed by Yunus is positioned as an innovative and specific solution, offering a micro-investment approach adapted to local realities and providing entrepreneurs with the opportunity to formalise their business on a small scale.