Afreximbank Targets $1.5 Billion Support for Burkina Faso’s Five-Year Plan

Ouagadougou (Capital Markets in Africa) – The African Export-Import Bank (Afreximbank) will arrange up to $1.5 billion in multi-sourced finance to support projects and initiatives under Burkina Faso’s five- year National Economic and Social Development Plan (PNDES), Bank President Dr. Benedict Oramah has announced in Ouagadougou.

Speaking on Tuesday after a meeting with Roch Marc Christian Kaboré, President of Burkina Faso, Dr. Oramah, said that the support would target activities aimed at building capacity in trade financing, agro-processing, renewable energy, telecommunications, tourism and logistics and that the Bank had identified 15 projects and initiatives, from the 83 in the PNDES, which it would consider for support.

“We studied the plan very carefully and in order to ensure efficiency and success in our collaboration with the country,” he said, “we selected projects that match the key pillars of our new strategic plan, IMPACT 2021, which focuses on boosting intra-African trade, accelerating Africa’s industrialisation, developing the continent’s export capacity and increasing its access to trade finance.”

“Since Burkina Faso became a member of the Bank, we have provided sizeable amounts of trade finance facilities to local entities operating in its textile, oil and gas and banking sectors,” said President Oramah, adding that the PNDES offered the right platform for a reinforced partnership with the country.

Responding, President Roch Kaboré commended Afreximbank for its commitment to the country and affirmed full support to the Bank in its interventions in favour of the country’s economic aspirations.

“As a landlocked country, the development of logistics infrastructure is at the heart of Burkina Faso’s economic prosperity,” he said, adding that it would help to achieve greater regional integration which was a key driver for national growth.

“We are planning to set-up regional processing factories for the transformation of the raw materials we have in common with neighbouring countries, such as cotton,” he continued. “The Bank’s industrialisation and export development strategy, as well as its intra-African trade endeavor, are, therefore, aligned with our priorities and we hope that the Bank’s visit and meetings in Ouagadougou will lead to the rapid implementation of our National Plan’s key projects.”

The Afreximbank delegation subsequently held meetings with Paul Kaba Thieba, the Prime Minister, and with several Burkinabe ministers on the projects identified by the Bank for support in order to agree on the next steps.

The delegation also met with some representatives from the banking industry and from other private sector institutions to discuss support to local businesses.