Reducing Africa’s infrastructure gap is the main aim of a new US$1.16 billion debt facility finalised recently.

The three-year syndicated loan, launched by the Nigeria-based pan-African Africa Finance Corporation (AFC), was oversubscribed by 49%, reports Bizcommunity.

It attracted new lenders from the Middle East and Europe, including Paris-based Société Générale, the Bank Muscat of Oman and Intesa Sanpolo Bank Luxembourg.

According to AFC president and CEO Samaila Zubairu, the debt facility is the AFC’s biggest ever.

She says the facility will ensure ‘that infrastructure projects support local processing and value capture, thereby providing the much-needed impetus to African industrialisation, enhanced export earnings and job creation’.

The facility’s initial mandated lead arrangers span a good portion of the globe, including the Abu Dhabi Commercial Bank PJSC (public joint-stock company); Emirates NBD Bank PJSC; Japan’s Mizuho Banking and Sumitomo Mitsui Banking Corporation; the Bank of China and Société Générale.

The AFC, which has 43 member countries, has invested US$13 billion across Africa since inception in 2007.

9 April 2024
Image: Freepik