The African Development Bank (AfDB) plans to raise $8 billion (about Sh826 billion) in the new-year tapping the capital markets with a view to lending to member countries on the continent.
The bank expects to access a wide array of capital markets having previously raised cash mostly in the form of US dollars, Euros, Australian dollars and sterling pounds.
“The board of the African Development Bank has approved the regional multilateral 2018 borrowing programme for $8 billion to be raised from capital markets,” said the lender in a statement.
The bank provides financial assistance to member countries by mobilising resources primarily from capital markets under its annual borrowing programme.
“We have stepped up our profile in international capital markets and will continue to raise funds across the globe to provide cost-effective resources to our clients,” stated Hassatou N’Sele, AfDB Group acting vice-president finance and treasurer.
The bank recently launched a social bond programme focused on meeting critical development challenges that Africa faces and that are at the heart of the bank’s social mandate.
“The AfDB will continue to explore the prospects for African currency bonds to facilitate the financing of its local currency operations and promote the development of domestic bond markets across Africa,” it said.
In Kenya, the regional lender has supported various projects including in the energy, ICT and entrepreneurship sectors.
Last October, AfDB announced that Kenya was set to benefit from a JPY 10 billion (about Sh9.3 billion) medium-term bond raised by the bank to help improve access to energy across Africa.
AfDB announced it had raised the money through a 10-year bond sold to Dai-ichi Life Insurance Company, the third-largest life insurer in Japan, to help the continent achieve universal electricity access by 2025.
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Credit: Business Daily
