Brussels, 22/07/2011 (Agence Europe) - The European Investment Bank (EIB), the Agence française de développement, and a broad grouping of development bodies, social investors and microfinance service providers launched, on Thursday 21 July, the European Solidarity Financing Fund for Africa (FEFISOL), Africa's first specialist rural microfinance fund supporting fair trade and organic small business. The €15 million FEFISOL fund will provide much needed microfinance funds for poor rural households across Africa and help finance small scale investment in agricultural activities. Three social investors with more than 25 years of experience working with microfinance institutions, agricultural cooperatives and small businesses in emerging countries will provide specialist support to the fund. These include the French development association, Solidarité International pour le Développement et l'Investissement (SIDI), to manage the FEFISOL fund, the Belgian development organisation Alterfin, and Etimos from Italy. The FEFISOL fund is expected to double in size by 2013 and will assist microfinance institutions that help poor households in rural areas where no formal lending exists. Rural microfinance will support income generating activities and reduce dependence on outside help, the EIB states. (O.L./transl.jl)