Nairobi, 24 June 2020 – The African Development Bank (AfDB), the Arab Bank for Economic Development in Africa (BADEA), and the OPEC Fund for International Development (the OPEC Fund) have, once again, stepped-up their support and commitment to the Eastern and Southern African Trade and Development Bank (TDB) and its mandate, via record risk sharing facilities as well as new funding, totalling over half a billion USD.
These commitments are part of an exciting string of new and expanded partnerships that TDB has been working on – various to be announced in the coming weeks – to continue deploying trade and project finance into the region, boost its Covid-19 response, and ultimately, contribute to the sustainable socio-economic development of the region and of its peoples.
AfDB – TDB’s pioneer institutional shareholder – has concluded a USD 200 million risk-sharing agreement with TDB, and approved two new funding facilities – a USD 50 million 10-year project finance facility in addition to a USD 50 million 3.5-year trade finance facility. The long-term facility aims at supporting infrastructure, agribusiness, manufacturing, healthcare, and renewable energy; the short-term facility, at supporting corporates and financial institutions looking to bridge critical trade financing gaps; and the risk-sharing facility, at enabling TDB to continue addressing trade finance and forex challenges, as well as secure the sourcing of vital commodities in the region it serves.
Similarly, in addition to further cooperation to be announced, TDB has concluded a new USD 200 million risk-sharing facility with BADEA, one of TDB’s institutional shareholders since 2018, building on a partnership of more than 6 years focused on increasing trade and development project finance activities, and impact-driven business development between Arab countries and TDB Member States.
Having subscribed to the Bank’s capital stock in 2017, the OPEC Fund has been extending financing to TDB for a decade, including earlier this month, a USD 50 million risk-sharing agreement aimed at boosting availability of hard currency liquidity to power vital commodity trade transactions, and more to follow.
ARTICLE: How Trade Finance Programmes at Multilateral Development Banks are closing the Trade Finance Gap
As a result of TDB’s consistent triple bottom line returns and notably its SDG-aligned impact, the appetite of these strategic multilateral financial institution partners – who have invested in our share capital – continues to grow amidst this period of crisis. Together with them, and alongside others to follow, TDB continues to ‘scale-up, speed up and synergize’ in the shared spirit of the Africa Investment Forum (AIF).
TDB President and Chief Executive, Mr. Admassu Tadesse said,
“We appreciate our growing multifaceted partnerships with AfDB, BADEA and the OPEC Fund. These are among our key allies which provide us with the right mix of capital, short- and long-term financing, co-financing and risk-sharing arrangements which make it possible to more vigorously advance sustainable development, and stimulate growth and socio-economic recovery during these disrupted times”.
During the global Covid-19 pandemic, TDB and its partners have together doubled down on their commitment to provide the firepower needed to sustain trade, minimise supply chain disruptions, support the sourcing of medical supplies, equipment and essential commodities, including food, as well as to continue investing in transformational projects in the region.
