Rio Tinto - TA & Local Supplier Development Project

completed

IFC and Rio Tinto signed a Cooperation Agreement to develop the Technical Assistance and Local Supplier Development project in Guinea, to support the development and operation of the Simandou Project, in which IFC has a 5% stake. The Proposed project is a follow-on to the pilot project implemented between 2009 and 2011 and its aim is to facilitate access to procurement opportunities for local small and medium enterprises (SME) in Guinea by addressing the key challenges they face, such as poor organizational and institutional structure, lack of management and financial capacity, poor technical skills, difficulty in accessing finance, and poor market access. These conditions make it difficult for Guinean SMEs to participate effectively in the economic activity generated by the Simandou Project, unless specific interventions are implemented to support their capacity development and to link them up with existing opportunities in the mining sector. The project is based on IFC's worldwide experience of supplier development and SME capacity building using proprietary high-quality information and tools (SME Toolkit), proven learning methodology (such as Business Edge), and a network of local training partners. The project will develop a strong link between the Simandou Project and local SMEs, thereby increasing their participation in Simandou's supply chain.