Côte d'Ivoire PME

What Côte d'Ivoire PME does

Côte d'Ivoire PME (legal name: Société d'État « Côte d'Ivoire PME ») is the Ivorian national SME support agency, created by government decree n°2022-262 on April 13, 2022, and placed under the technical supervision of the Minister in charge of SME Promotion and the financial supervision of the Minister in charge of the State Portfolio. It operates a nationwide network of 11 Bureau de Développement Economique Régional (BDER) offices covering Abengourou, Abidjan, Bondoukou, Bouaké, Daloa, Gagnoa, Korhogo, Man, Odienné, San Pedro, and Yamoussoukro, and serves entrepreneurs, very small enterprises (TPE), SMEs, ETIs, women-led businesses, youth (18-40), startups, and rural cooperatives through free capacity-building, formalization, financing linkage, market access, and digital transformation services.

The organization delivers its mandate through a portfolio of flagship instruments: the PEJEDEC-3 youth employability program; the PA-PSGOUV entrepreneurship support project funded by the World Bank (targeting 7,500 trainees, 860 structured projects including 250 startups, 10,100 jobs, and 30% women-led financing allocation); the Dream Factory incubator; the Tomorrow Fab Learning Academy (co-developed with IFC, training 107 SMEs in its first cohort); the Campus PME online learning platform; sector-specific programs such as PAIC (cocoa, cassava, plantain value chains with GIZ), PAFE (women exporters with TFO Canada), Pro Agro YOUTH (with ILO/IFAD), and the Affirmative Procurement initiative (with UN Women and AfDB). Underlying these services is a Business Intelligence stack built on Power BI for KPI monitoring and a Digital Maturity Diagnostic Tool developed with ENSEA.

Its business model is non-commercial: Côte d'Ivoire PME is funded by the Ivorian state budget and by grants from international development partners (World Bank, GIZ, AfDB, IFC, ITC, JICA, Enabel, ILO/IFAD, UN Women, TFO Canada, CARE International). All services are delivered free of charge to beneficiaries. The company functions as an implementation platform for donor-funded programs rather than a revenue-generating enterprise, with 129 employees coordinating program delivery, monitoring and evaluation, and ecosystem-building across physical offices and digital channels.

Name

Côte d'Ivoire PME

Legal name

Société d'État « Côte d'Ivoire PME »

Website

https://cipme.ci

Company type

Private

Founded year

2022

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

101–250 employees

Short description

Côte d'Ivoire PME is the Ivorian state-owned national SME support agency, created in 2022, operating 11 regional BDER offices and delivering free entrepreneurship, capacity-building, and financing-linkage services to TPE, SMEs, startups, women, and youth via donor-funded programs.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

SME Development Services

NAICS

Management of Companies and Enterprises (55), All Other Business Support Services (561499)

SIC

Services-Management Services (8741)

akta.pro primary industry

Program & Project Management (PMO) Consulting (BPAHACAL)

akta.pro secondary industries

National Development Banks & State Development Finance Institutions (DFIs) (BPADACAC), SME & Entrepreneurship Development (Trade-Linked) (BPADAMAE)

Keywords

• SME development services
• Business incubation
• Entrepreneurship training
• Capacity building programs
• Access to finance

Headquarters

HQ city

Abidjan

HQ country

Côte d’Ivoire

HQ region

Africa

Offices11 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Infrastructure, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales, Others

Revenue model

1. Government Budget & State Funding: Côte d'Ivoire PME is a state-owned company (Société d'État) receiving operational funding from the Ivorian government under the technical supervision of the Minister of SME Promotion and financial supervision of the Minister of State Portfolio.
2. International Development Partner Grants: The organization implements programs funded by international development institutions including the World Bank (PA-PSGOUV), GIZ (PAIC, Invest for Jobs), African Development Bank (BAD), International Trade Center / ITC (WACOMP), IFC (Tomorrow Fab), TFO Canada / Global Affairs Canada (PAFE), FIDA (Pro Agro YOUTH), JICA, and Enabel (PEM N'ZASSA). These are grant-based programs targeting SME support outcomes.

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels5 records

Marketing channels8 records

Core offering

Côte d'Ivoire PME is a state-owned company created by decree n°2022-262 of April 13, 2022, that delivers free support services to entrepreneurs, startups, and SMEs (TPE/PME/ETI) in Côte d'Ivoire. Its core offerings include business incubation, entrepreneurship training, capacity building, advisory services, facilitation of access to financing, and market access support, delivered through programs such as PEJEDEC-3 and PA-PSGOUV and a network of 11 regional BDER offices. The company functions as the government's central implementing agency for SME and youth entrepreneurship development.

Product overview

Côte d'Ivoire PME is a state-owned company (Société d'État) that provides a comprehensive ecosystem of support services for entrepreneurs, startups, SMEs, and their ecosystem in Côte d'Ivoire. The organization's offerings include employment and entrepreneurship programs (PEJEDEC-3 and PA-PSGOUV), an incubator (Dream Factory), an online learning platform (Tomorrow Fab Learning Academy), training resources (Campus PME), and a network of 11 regional offices (BDER) across the country. The portfolio focuses on improving access to financing and markets, strengthening technical and managerial capacities, and promoting entrepreneurial culture and innovation.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Dream Factory: Incubator operated by Côte d'Ivoire PME for supporting startups and entrepreneurs
• Campus PME
• Tomorrow Fab
• PA-PSGOUV
• PEJEDEC

Products and services

• PEJEDEC-3 (Programme d'Appui à l'Emploi des Jeunes et au Développement des Compétences) A flagship government program implemented by Côte d'Ivoire PME that targets young people with training, capacity building, and support to create or grow businesses. It is delivered free of charge to beneficiaries and rolled out through the BDER regional network and partner structures.
• PA-PSGOUV (Projet d'Appui au Programme Social du Gouvernement) A government program support project that finances and delivers SME and entrepreneurship support actions under the Government's social program. It is implemented by Côte d'Ivoire PME and includes a beneficiary verification platform to ensure targeting of eligible TPE/PME/ETI.
• Dream Factory A startup incubator operated by Côte d'Ivoire PME that supports innovative and growth-oriented startups with structured cohorts, mentorship, and access to networks and capital. It targets founders and early-stage companies, including youth and women entrepreneurs.
• Tomorrow Fab Learning Academy An entrepreneurship learning academy operated by Côte d'Ivoire PME that delivers training curricula and capacity-building modules to entrepreneurs, startups, and SMEs. It serves as a key delivery channel for capacity-building content under programs such as PEJEDEC-3 and PA-PSGOUV.
• Campus PME A capacity-building campus offering from Côte d'Ivoire PME that delivers structured training, workshops, and advisory modules to SMEs (TPE/PME/ETI) across Côte d'Ivoire. It supports managerial and operational upskilling as part of the agency's broader SME support mandate.
• BDER Regional Offices (Bureaux de Développement des Entreprises Régionales) A network of 11 regional offices operated by Côte d'Ivoire PME across Côte d'Ivoire that serve as the front door for SME and entrepreneur support services. They deliver advisory, program enrollment, training, and referrals to financing and market access.

Quantifiable outcome

• Over 400 TPE digitalized between 2019-2024; 10,100 jobs targeted through PA-PSGOUV alone; 1,500 jobs targeted through PEJEDEC-3; 300 promoters targeted under 2PAI-Bélier.
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers18 records

Segments7 records

Ideal customer profiles5 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature4 records

Partnerships

Nine partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• Enabel (Belgian Development Agency)coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 December 2024Enabel leads the PEM N'ZASSA project, which aims to improve the performance of Ivorian companies through innovative circular mobility approaches between Côte d'Ivoire and Belgium. Côte d'Ivoire PME participates in missions including entrepreneurial mobility to Belgium and France, with 19 Ivorian entrepreneurs and staff participating in the November-December 2024 mission.
• IFC (International Finance Corporation)coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 May 2024IFC co-developed and co-funds the 'Tomorrow Fab Learning Academy' program, which delivers certified business training to SMEs. The first session ran May 27-29, 2024 at Dream Factory, training 107 SMEs with a second session planned for August-September 2024 targeting 200 additional SMEs. Six certified experts deliver the training.
• ITC (International Trade Center)coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 May 2024The ITC (Geneva) supported Côte d'Ivoire PME's participation in WACOMP (West Africa Competitiveness Programme) activities, including the final financing access events at the 3i Africa Summit in Accra in May 2024. The Scan WACOMP diagnostic tool has been integrated into Côte d'Ivoire PME's diagnostic toolkit.
• FEMMPACT (GIZ, AMCI, SIL-UM6P)minorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 April 2024FEMMPACT is a cooperation program carried by GIZ in partnership with AMCI (Moroccan International Cooperation Agency) and SIL (Social Innovation Lab) of Mohammed VI Polytechnic University. A FEMMPACT delegation visited Dream Factory in April 2024 to learn about Côte d'Ivoire PME's support for women entrepreneurs.
• MarocPMEminorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2024Morocco's national SME support agency, listed as a partner with an established convention for cooperation and exchange of good practices in SME support between Côte d'Ivoire and Morocco.
• OIT/ILO (Organisation Internationale du Travail) and FIDA/FIDAcoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 August 2023The ILO and IFAD jointly fund the 'Pro Agro YOUTH' project, implemented by Côte d'Ivoire PME, to revitalize rural economies, promote employment, and combat unemployment in Côte d'Ivoire. The project organizes business-to-government and business-to-business matchmaking workshops in northern regions (Boundiali, Korhogo, Ferkessédougou).
• ONU Femmes / UN WomencoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 April 2023UN Women and Côte d'Ivoire PME jointly implement the 'Affirmative Procurement' project, a WE-FI initiative supported by the African Development Bank (BAD), to strengthen women-led enterprises' capacity to access public procurement and supply goods and services in response to the COVID-19 pandemic.
• CARE International Côte d'IvoireminorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 December 2021CARE International Côte d'Ivoire, funded by the German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ) and implemented with GIZ, partners with Côte d'Ivoire PME on the Women and Youth Rural Capacity Building project, which formalizes income-generating activities into formal businesses and links entrepreneurs with banking services in rural areas.
• PUM (Programma Uitzending Managers)minorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 February 2015PUM (Netherlands senior experts) met with Côte d'Ivoire PME for a collaboration aimed at supporting Ivorian TPE/PME productivity. The meeting, organized with GIZ and GIGA, focused on presenting results of the impact evaluation of the PAP-PME program cohort 3.

Scale indicators11 records

Recent moves1 record

Emerging players

• Endeavor: Global high-impact entrepreneurship support organization operating in emerging markets — an emerging player that overlaps with CIPME's startup/innovator support mandate, particularly via mentorship, networks, and access-to-capital services.

Broad incumbents

• TechnoServe: Global non-profit implementing donor-funded enterprise development programs in Côte d'Ivoire and across Africa (including agribusiness value chain work similar to PAIC). Operates at greater scale and geographic breadth than CIPME.
• Agence de Promotion de l'Industrie et de l'Innovation (APII) Tunisia: Tunisia's national agency for industrial and innovation promotion — a broader incumbent with overlapping SME support, incubation, and innovation mandate across North Africa, structurally similar as a state-mandated development agency.
• BPI France: France's public investment bank providing SME financing, innovation support, and export assistance — comparable in mandate structure (state-owned SME/entrepreneurship promoter) but at vastly greater scale and with a commercial financial model.

Direct peers

• Agence de Promotion des Investissements Privés (APIP) Senegal: Senegal's national agency for private investment and SME/business support — a West African peer operating similar programmatic functions including advisory, financing facilitation, and donor-funded SME development under government mandate.
• MarocPME: Morocco's national agency for SME promotion, directly comparable as a state-mandated SME support institution operating an incubator (CasaNearshore/Tamwilcom), training platforms, and donor-funded programs. CIPME already has an active cooperation convention with MarocPME.
• FONGIP (Fonds de Garantie des Investissements Prioritaires): Senegalese public fund providing guarantees and financing support to SMEs and startups — directly comparable as a state-owned development finance institution with similar SME development objectives in the West African region.
• DER/Fonds de Financement de la Formation Professionnelle (3FPT) Senegal: Senegal's Délégation à l'Entrepreneuriat Rapide operates programs very similar to PEJEDEC and PA-PSGOUV — youth entrepreneurship training, financing, and coaching — making it a direct functional peer in the same West African ecosystem.

Regional players

• MicroBank (CaixaBank microfinance): European microfinance institution focused on micro-entrepreneurs and SMEs — operates comparable financial inclusion and capacity-building services but in a different geographic market, serving as a structural reference for SME-focused support entities.

Others

• African Development Bank (AfDB) SME Development Programs: AfDB is both a funder of CIPME programs and an ecosystem participant running its own SME/inclusive finance programs across Africa — relevant as both an indirect competitor for donor funding and an enabling ecosystem player.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/cote-d-ivoire-pme

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles8 records

Subsidiaries11 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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M&A

Investments

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Frequently asked questions about Côte d'Ivoire PME