AYECHIN

1- Specific problem

Inaccessibility to financing for micro, small and medium enterprises in developing countries.

2- Global scale

According to the results of a survey distributed by the PROPARCO AFD group, the private sector credit to GDP ratio only reaches 18% on average in Africa compared to 30% in South Asia and 107% in high-income countries and only 11% in low-income countries. Which is low compared to the 21% reached by non-African countries belonging to the same income bracket in 2017.

 3- Why the problem exists and persists

The problem persists due to the unreliability of financial, accounting and administrative data on micro, small and medium-sized enterprises and the non-existence of a credibility rating agency for these enterprises in developing countries.

 4- Supporting data

Information indicates that 82.6% of micro, small and medium enterprises in Africa have unmet financing needs. This financing gap was 41% for all developing countries in 2018.

https://www.smefinanceforum.org/data-sites/msme-finance-gap

AYECHIN is a web and mobile solution. AYECHIN is used to assess the credibility of micro, small and medium enterprises.

 AYECHIN aims above all to be a reliable database serving companies and their material parties. AYECHIN collects and analyzes administrative, financial and accounting data from companies to instantly establish their income statement and key performance indicators using the traceability tool called AYECHIN Company Income Statement (ACIS).

Then at the end of each month the companies are audited using the audit tool called AYECHIN Company Audit Report (ACAR).

Finally, at the end of each quarter, the company's credibility is obtained using the credibility rating tool called AYECHIN Company Credibility Score (ACCS).

  Here is a demonstration video of our solution:

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=PFJYvxrad7M

Our solution is aimed at income-generating activities (IGA), very small businesses (VSE) and small and medium-sized businesses (SMEs) in developing countries.

These companies from developing countries all have a common problem, namely the inaccessibility of financing for their activities, since they are not at all credible.

Our solution addresses the main causes of the lack of credibility of economic operators in developing countries, which are:
1- the non-traceability of products, information and financial flows of activities leading to the unavailability of administrative, accounting and financial information concerning them;
2 - poor relationships between stakeholders in the entrepreneurial ecosystem, including staff, customers, suppliers and financial institutions;
3- the absence of branding (of staff, products and the working or sales environment);
4- non-compliance with quality, health, safety and environmental (QHSE) measures;
5- and non-compliance with corporate social responsibility (CSR) measures.

To give credibility to economic operators, our solution called AYECHIN aims to:

1- the traceability of their daily activities for the availability of their administrative, accounting and financial information;
2- audit the companies once a month.
3- the rating of the credibility of companies every three months following the credibility rating parameters and factors established by us on the basis of the invention patent numbered 19124 of the African Intellectual Property Organization, winner of the special prize Ivorian employers and the Ministry of Intellectual Property. Higher education and scientific research for innovation 2020-2021, for the formalization of the informal sector in developing countries.

The administrative, accounting and financial data of companies will be made available to them so that they can transmit them, if necessary, to their partners. Furthermore, certain non-confidential general information may be directly consultable by the public from our applications and/or our site.

Having become aware of my limitations in implementing my solution, I decided to expand my team to include, among others:

- a web and mobile development engineer;

- a senior technician in web and mobile development;

- the president of the Coordination of Development Organizations through Education;

 - a financial inspector at the Ministry of Economy and Finance.

It is the difficulty that Ivorian entrepreneurs experience in finding financing for their activities that has pushed me, since 1999, to seek an endogenous solution to this problem specific to developing countries. From 2004 to 2012, I was an entrepreneur, which allowed me to immerse myself in the Ivorian entrepreneurial ecosystem to experience the problem and better understand the difficulties of entrepreneurs. In addition, since 2013, I have been a project manager and then a business advisory assistant, which allowed me to help a certain number of companies gain credibility in order to benefit from financing for their activities.

 Our AYECHIN solution responds to the need of local entrepreneurs, in the Abidjan district that we already advise, to see their activities traced and audited and their credibility to influence the decisions of potential financiers.

Today, we have more than 100 businesses registered in our physical database, including 60 income-generating activities (IGA), 30 very small businesses (VSE) and 10 small and medium-sized businesses (SME), within the municipality of Yopougon, in the Abidjan district which has been the subject of regular monitoring since the beginning of January 2023, which we will record in the AYECHIN Application whose official launch is planned for April 25, 2024 during the first edition ofof the investment fair dedicated to youth in December From 25 to 26, 2024 at the Sofitel Hôtel Ivoire under the theme: Investing in the future of the country – young entrepreneurs, start-ups, SMEs.

https://www.salondelinvestissement.ci/intervenants

Once registered with AYECHIN, these companies will be audited at the end of each month, for the first time, at the end of May and we assess their credibility three months later, at the end of July 2024.

The major obstacles to our expansion are above all of relational and communicational origin rather than financial.

And we believe that Solve's lobbying with the authorities of each country can increase our credibility in the different countries with employers' organizations, ministries of crafts and small and medium-sized businesses.

Additionally, we strongly believe that Solve can connect us with partners who can help us advance our solution in developing countries in Africa and the rest of the world.

Our solution is innovative:
- on the one hand because it involves the establishment of an invention patent
- on the other hand because it is the very first web and mobile solution for traceability, audit and credibility of income-generating activities (IGA), VSEs (VSEs) and small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs). This is also the first time that IGAs, VSEs and SMEs have been traced, audited and rated in developing countries to increase their credibility so that they are qualified to access financing.

Economic operators using our solution carry out daily monitoring as part of the traceability of their activities, but also monthly as part of their audit and finally quarterly as part of the rating of their reliability. This results in the continuous improvement of their credibility in order to satisfy stakeholders, in particular their financiers and potential investors.

  AYECHIN could change the entrepreneurial ecosystem by improving the trust or credibility of companies, improving the baning credit rate of companies and improving the financing rate of IGAs, VSEs and SMEs in developing countries.

AYECHIN contributes directly and indirectly to the creation of jobs and wealth in developing countries.

AYECHIN will thus contribute to the acceleration of financial inclusion and economic prosperity in developing countries through the structural transformation of their informal economy into a formal economy.

AYECHIN could prove to be a reliable data bank for civil society organizations, states, governments, financial institutions, investors and donors in terms of making investment decisions in national, regional and international level in the private sector in developing countries.

Economic operators in developing countries need our AYECHIN solution to build and maintain their credibility in order to be able to capture funding for their activities. Indeed, due to lack of credibility with their stakeholders, particularly financial institutions, micro and small businesses do not benefit from financial assistance despite ever-increasing demand.

Theories of change
1- Our Services

ACIS, AYECHIN Company Income statement for traceability

ACAR, AYECHIN Company Audit Report 

ACCS, AYECHIN Company Credibility Score

2- Short-term effects on beneficiaries

Collection of administrative, financial and accounting data from companies 
Traceability of company activities

Audit of Business activities

Rating of Business credibility

3- Long-term result on beneficiaries
data bank

Business structuring

Business credibility

Increase in trust capital

Financial inclusion

Increase in business credit

Increase in the corporate financing rate

Formalization of the informal sector

The impact objectives for our solution are:

Short-term effects on beneficiaries:
Collection of administrative, financial and accounting data from companies

Traceability of company's activities

Audit of company's activities

Rating of company's credibility

Short term progress indicators:

The number of registered companies 

The number of companies audited 

The number of companies rated

Long-term result on beneficiaries:

Data bank

Structuring of companies

Business credibility

Financial inclusion

Increase in business credit

Increase in the corporate financing rate

Formalization of the informal sector

Long term progress indicators :

The number of companies having opened a bank account thanks to AYECHIN
The number of companies having acquired financing thanks to AYECHIN
The rate of companies financed on the number of credible compagnies

The technology behind our solution relies on a combination of several modern and traditional tools to effectively address the credibility challenges of micro, small and medium enterprises using the AYECHIN solution.

At the heart of our solution are modern web and mobile development technologies. For the web application, we chose React.js, a JavaScript framework known for its flexibility, performance and ability to create dynamic and interactive user interfaces. This technology allows us to develop a user-friendly and responsive web platform, offering a fluid and engaging user experience. As for the underlying RESTful API, we opted for Laravel 10, a robust and scalable PHP framework, appreciated for its ease of development, security and scalability. Laravel allows us to design and implement a solid backend architecture, providing reliable and efficient web services for our application.

For the mobile app, we chose React Native, a cross-platform mobile app development framework that allows us to build native apps for iOS and Android from a single JavaScript codebase. This approach allows us to reduce development and maintenance costs while providing a native, high-performance user experience. By using React Native, we can efficiently share code between the web app and mobile app, ensuring consistency in functionality and user experience.

Beyond modern development technologies, our solution also integrates elements of traditional technology and local know-how. At the heart of the AYECHIN solution are endogenous mechanisms for formalization and structural transformation of the economy based on business credibility and adapted to the needs and realities of the community, thus strengthening its long-term impact and sustainability in the developing countries.

In summary, our solution skillfully combines modern technologies such as React.js, Laravel 10 and React Native with elements of traditional technology and local know-how, to create a comprehensive and inclusive platform aimed at solving clients' credibility challenges . businesses. By taking a holistic and inclusive approach to technology, we believe our solution can bring significant benefits to businesses at national, regional and international levels, thereby driving the structural transformation of the informal economy in developing countries.

Full-time staff [2],

Part-time staff [3],

and contractors or other workers [10]

As for the other workers, they are job seekers trained by us to help us support economic operators as business advisory assistants or credibility rating agents. For us, they are suppliers in the implementation of our solution and not employees. Their number will logically increase depending on the number of beneficiaries of our solution.

They are linked to our organization by a supplier contract called the Business Advisory Assistant Contract for consultant assistants and the Credibility Rating Contract for rating agents.

I started designing my solution 25 years ago:

From 2004 to 2012, I experimented with the solution myself. From 2013 to 2018, I started to benefit other companies.

Since January 15, 2020, my solution has been sanctioned by an AIPO invention patent and won the special prize from the Ivorian employers and the Ministry of Higher Education and Scientific Research in January 2021 for the formalization of the informal sector.

Since January 2023, I have integrated an engineer and a senior technician for the development of my solution in the form of a web and mobile solution.

The mission of the Diversity, Equity and Inclusion committee of AYECHIN ORGANIZATION is to promote a pleasant working environment that respects the values of community living together in diversity, equity and inclusion both at the national and international level through mutual respect, gender equality and employment opportunities. for our staff as well as for our subscribers and suppliers.

AYECHIN ORGANIZATION aims to be an equal employment opportunity employer. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment and will not be discriminated against on the basis of race, color, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, religion, disability, age, genetic information, veteran status, ancestry or national or ethnic origin.

We intend to provide more opportunities to young women and disabled staff as Business Advisor Assistants and Business Credibility Rating Officers in supporting businesses such as income generating activities and very small businesses in the following proportions: 60% women, 30 men and 10% disabled people.

Diversity: Coming from diverse ethnic origins and religions is a guarantee of success and rapid expansion of our organization which continues to multiply partnerships.

Equity: We make no difference between the sexes and we give more space to women who have been marginalized until now.

Inclusion: We strive to create an environment where everyone feels valued and respected. This is explained by the fact that we have the same working tools (the AYECHIN solution) for all business advisors and rating agents regardless of their level of studies, to support economic operators in developing countries.

We are open to suggestions from users of our solution in order to continually improve it for the benefit of both users and beneficiaries, such as businesses such as income-generating activities, VSEs and SMEs.

Value proposition

1- What do you propose?

We offer a web and mobile application for assessing business credibility

2- Who will you give it to?

Our solution is dedicated to informal and formal businesses in developing countries.

3- What type of value or benefit is associated with your offer?

In developing countries, our solution increases the satisfaction of actors in the entrepreneurial ecosystem on the one hand and promotes an increase in banking credit rate and the financing rate of companies on the other hand.

 4- How is value generated?

In developing countries, the daily collection of company data and their analysis, the monthly audit and the quarterly rating of the credibility of companies promote decision-making in the choice of service providers and suppliers on the one hand and the credit to the informal economy of the other. We undertake to pay 66% of our revenue from subscriptions to business advisory assistants and credibility rating agents who will be recruited and trained for this task as service providers or suppliers to our organization. This represents a cost of external services of $16,060 at the end of 2024 and which could reach $1,254,000 by 2030.

5- Why does it differ from or is better than other options?

Our solution is innovative and a first in Côte d'Ivoire. In addition, it is sanctioned by a patent of invention from the African Intellectual Property Organization (AIPO) under number 19124 of January 15, 2020 and won the special prize from employers and the ministry of higher education and scientific research. of Côte d'Ivoire on January 21, 2021 for innovation relating to the formalization of the informal sector. This gives us a competitive advantage until 2038 in the OHADA area or the 17 member countries of AIPO in our expansion strategy.

 In summary:

We offer a web and mobile solution for business credibility scoring

This value is generated by the daily collection of data, the monthly audit and the quarterly rating of the credibility of companies in order to promote decision-making in the choice of service providers and suppliers on the one hand and credit to the informal economy on the other hand.

Our solution is innovative and sanctioned by an invention patent from the African Intellectual Property Organization.  

 My invention won in 2021 the special prize for innovation from the Ivorian employers and the Ministry of higher education and scientific research for formalization. of the informal sector for an amount of $16,447.37 .

Since April 8, 2024, our solution, in the form of a web and mobile application, has allowed us to start building the credibility of a certain number of economic operators to qualify them to access financing for their activities.

Economic operators benefit from our support services through an annual subscription payable monthly. Costs range from $3.29 to $246.71 .

For the month of April 2024, we recorded 100 subscribers for a turnover of $1,069.08 . By the end of 2024, we plan to have 3,000 subscribers with projected revenue of $32,072.37 . We have a price list and subscription contracts which govern our relationships as part of the support we provide them.

Vertical scaling

We have already signed two partnerships respectively with EIC Corporation, an international organization under Ivorian law present in more than 50 countries and the Coordination of Development Organizations through Education (CODE), an active organization of Ivorian civil society.
We are waiting to sign other partnerships with other civil society organizations and micro, small and medium-sized enterprises but also with the Youth Employment Agency; the Ministry of Vocational Education; the Ministry of Family, Women and Children; the Ministry of Crafts and the Ministry of SMEs and also with Wave and the United Bank for Africa (UBA) in Côte d'Ivoire for the financial inclusion and  the financing of our beneficiaries and users.

Horizontal scaling
We plan to extend our solution to other countries in the sub-region, notably ECOWAS countries and in Central Africa through LEGAFRIK, our lessor in Ivory Coast, which already has offices in several other African countries. 
Our solution is also a solution to unemployment in developing countries, which affects 9 million job seekers each year since 2016, according to an African Development Bank (ADB) report made public in 2018.