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Tag: African Development Bank (AfDB)

  • 24 states to benefit from AfDB’s backing on agric expansion

    24 states to benefit from AfDB’s backing on agric expansion

    Nigeria has secured enhanced funding commitments from the African Development Bank (AfDB) to operationalise the second phase of its Special Agro-Industrial Processing Zones (SAPZ).

    With the development, the programme will extend to 24 states from seven and the Federal Capital Territory.

    The approval was granted after Vice President Kashim Shettima met with AfDB President Sidi Ould Tah on the sidelines of the 80th Session of the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) in New York, United States, at the weekend.

     Justifying the  request, the Vice President said Nigeria is the largest shareholder in AfDB and its portfolio hovers in the neighbourhood of over $10 billion.

    Shettima, in a statement by the  Senior Special Assistant to the President on Media and Communications, Office of the Vice President, Stanley Nkwocha,  said:  “We urge you (AfDB) to further support us in the phase 2 Special Agro-Industrial Processing Zones (SAPZ).’’

    Although  Nkwocha did not list the 24 states that would benefit from Phase 2 of the programme but those currently in the first phase    are  Kaduna, Kano, Kwara, Imo, Cross River, Ogun, Oyo and the  FCT.

    He quoted Shettima as saying: “You (AfDB) assisted us with $300 million when you were in Liberia. We want to thank you, but like Oliver Twist, we are asking for more because we are poised to diversify our mono-product economy into agriculture, especially value-added agricultural export.

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    “And we have the potential in all the agro-ecological zones in Nigeria. From the mangrove forest swamps in the south to the Sahelian region in the far north, you can virtually grow anything. In states like Kebbi, the soil is very fertile.” 

    The Vice-President added that Nigeria boasts a resourceful youth population that is   eager to be co-opted into the workforce of the 21st century.

    He also implored the AfDB to support for innovation-driven enterprises, instead of focusing only on MSMEs, noting that the digital space offers a vista of opportunities for Africa’s development.

    “We can catalyse and accelerate the digital space in Africa. Already, out of the eight unicorns in Africa, five are from Nigeria – Moniepoint, Jumia, and the rest. We want to once again reiterate that we are with you, we are for you, and we will stand by you,”  Shettima told  Tah.

    Minister of Environment  Balarabe Lawal  also sought the support of the bank for the Pan African Great Green Wall Initiative, especially Nigeria’s Great Green Wall Project.

    Lawal  said: “I want to appeal for the extension of your support to Nigeria’s National Agency for the Great Green Wall. The agency is responsible for containing desertification in the Sahelian part of Africa.

    ‘’I also want to plead that you look at what we have done so far in addressing environmental degradation in the 11 frontline States.

    “We have already submitted our proposal to the Ministry of Finance on the issue of clean cooking policy, which is also directly linked to the afforestation process. It is important because it will address two issues of deforestation and health.”

    Minister of Housing and Urban Development Ahmed Dangiwa also appealed to the AfDB to support the ministry in addressing the housing deficit in Nigeria.

     AfDB President Tah assured that under his leadership, the bank will spare no effort to provide Nigeria with the support it deserves in developing its human capital.

    He said: “My vision for the bank is not as a lending institution, but as a catalyst institution with which to mobilise resources and capital from all over the world to Africa. I hope we can really bring capital to the continent to make the transformation of our continent possible and bring value to the agricultural sector.

    “This is why my four cardinal points are: mobilise large-scale capital through partnerships, reform Africa’s financial architecture, convert the continent’s demographic dividend into economic strength for job creation, and industrialise Africa by harnessing its natural resources to add value and build resilient infrastructure.

    “These points form my roadmap to guide the bank’s strategy and accelerate Africa’s development, and I’m confident that with your support, the bank will be able to bring transformation to the continent,” the AfDB President said.

    Shettima meets St. Kitts PM on Africa-Caribbean ties

    Vice President Shettima also held a bilateral meeting with the Prime Minister of St. Kitts and Nevis, Dr Terrance Drew.

    The duo recommitted to strengthening economic and cultural ties between the Carrinean nations and Nigeria.

    Shettima assured Drew of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s determination to rekindle friendship and brotherhood between both nations.

    He said: “Going forward, we should have robust engagement and understanding. We should stand by each other. We should stand for one another. We should support each other’s interests.

    “For St. Kitts and Nevis, and Nigeria, what binds us together supersedes whatever divides us. The majority of the population of the Caribbean is of African descent. A large chunk of them are English-speaking countries. Quite a number of them belong to the Commonwealth. So, the commonalities we share are so significant, but contact has been low, relative to what it ought to be.”

    “I want to assure you that my boss is very keen on rekindling that friendship, that sense of brotherhood and sisterhood, and see to it that going forward, we should have robust engagement and understanding.” 

  • Africa imports $50b food annually

    AFRICAN countries import nearly $50 billion net of food annually despite the continent holding 60 per cent of the world’s arable land, the African Development Bank (AfDB) has said.

    The bank’s Vice President for Agriculture, Human, and Social Development, Jennifer Blanke, stated this during a panel discussion at the 7th Tokyo International Conference, which ended in Yokohama, Japan at the weekend

    The theme of the conference was: “Advancing Africa’s Development through People, Technology, and Innovation.’’

    Blanke said investing in Africa’s food markets, governments could win the fight against stunting and improve nutrition across the continent.

    She added that with support from institutions like the AfDB, the results would be a win-win situation for all.

    Read Also: AfDB okays $25b for agric, agribusiness

    “There is a business case for governments to invest in grey matter, or brainpower, and this requires much more nutritious diets.

    “With most people in Africa getting their food from local markets, business opportunities for healthy foods abound everywhere in the food system and potential investors are urged to engage and explore,” he said.

    Blanke, however, added that women in agriculture were an overlooked stakeholder group, saying that in most parts of Africa, most farmers were women.

    She explained that the bank’s Affirmative Finance Action for Women in Africa initiative known as AFAWA, sought to support women entrepreneurs in Africa.

    According to her, through AFAWA the AfDB aimed to raise at least 300 million dollars for a guarantee facility will spur lending to African women entrepreneurs.

  • AfDB invests $2b to train six million African scientists

    THE African Development Bank (AfDB) has committed $2 billion to the education and training of six million science students in Africa from 2005 to date.

    A statement by the bank’s Communication and External Relations Departmenton Thursday, in Abuja, said AfDB’s President, Dr. Akinwumi Adesina, broke the news at the Tokyo International Conference of African   Development  (TICAD) in Japan.

    Adesina said the bank was strongly supporting Africa to train and develop the next generation of scientists.

    The statement reads: “Since 2005, we have provided financing of over two billion dollars to support education; this has provided education opportunities for six million students.

    “We are proud of our investment in supporting the establishment of the Regional Center of Excellence in Kigali, in conjunction with the Carnegie Mellon University, which is providing world class Masters’ degree training in Information and Communication Technology (ICT).

    “I am delighted that all the students that have graduated from the university have 100 per cent employment, including setting up their own businesses.

    “The bank has supported the establishment of ICT digital parks in Senegal and Cape Verde.

    “We are working with the Rockefeller Foundation, Microsoft, Facebook, LinkedIn and Safaricom to establish coding centers in several countries.”

    Adesina thanked the Government of Japan for its strategic partnership with the bank in promoting science and technology in Africa.

    He said the bank supported the establishment of the Egypt-Japan University of Science and Technology in Egypt, the Jomo Kenyatta University of Agriculture and Technology, and the African University of Science and Technology in Nigeria.

    Read Also: AfDB approves $20m for clean energy

    According to him, in partnership with Japan, the Education for Sustainable Development in Africa (ESDA) has supported inter-university partnerships between eight African and four Japanese universities.

    He added that the Japan Africa Dream Scholarship Programme between the AfDB and Japan had supported African students to study in diverse fields of specialisation, including energy, agriculture, health, environmental sciences and engineering.

    Adesina said the collaboration also promoted university-industry partnerships.

    He said: “We greatly appreciate the support of the Government of Japan for the Science, Technology and Innovation Forum.

    “As we look toward the future, I would like to suggest seven key areas to prioritise on Africa’s drive in science and technology.

    “Africa must establish more universities of science and technologies, especially regional centers of excellence and ensure they are very well funded.

    “There’s an urgent need to increase the share of GDP that is devoted to science and technology to help Africa boost its competitiveness.

    “We must close the gender gap in higher education and strongly support more female students to go into science, technology, engineering and mathematics.

    “Equally important is the need to provide strong support to the Africa Institute of Mathematical Sciences – a world-class network of universities and African global scholars that will be critical for driving the 4th industrial revolution.”

    The AfDB president said there was need to expand digital infrastructure across the continent to drive down the cost of broadband crucial for quantum data analytics.

    Adesina stressed the need to support varsities to fast-track the development of technology and innovation entrepreneurship platforms.

  • $251m lifeline for African women entrepreneurs

    Leaders of the G7 nations have approved a $251 million package in support of the African Development Bank (AfDB) Affirmative Finance Action for Women in Africa (AFAWA) initiative to support women entrepreneurs in Africa.

    AFAWA aims to raise up to $5 billion for African women entrepreneurs and the AfDB will provide $1 billion financing. The risk-sharing mechanism used by AFAWA is a practical approach to international commitments.

    It is a direct response to the demand by women to ease access to financing, specifically on the need to establish a financing mechanism for women’s economic empowerment.

    AFAWA was adopted during a summit of African Heads of State in 2015 and assigned to the African Development Bank for implementation.

    The $251 million package for African women entrepreneurs was announced at a press conference at the G7 Summit in Biarritz, France, during the week.

    French President/G7 president Emmanuel Macron said: “I am particularly proud, as the current G7 president, that the programme we are supporting today, the AFAWA initiative, comes from an African organisation, the AfDB, which works with African guarantee funds and a network of African banks.”

    Beninese artist Angelique Kidjo, a guest at the press conference, in her role as programme ambassador, described African women as the continent’s backbone. “I’m thrilled to bring their voice to the G7. AFAWA is essential for our continent,” she said.

    AfDB President Akinwumi Adesina applauded the “extraordinary support of all the G7 heads of state and government, which will provide incredible momentum” to the AFAWA programme.

    “This is a great day for African women. Investing in women entrepreneurs in Africa is important, because women are not only Africa’s future, they are Africa’s present,” he said.

    Adesina said women operate over 40 per cent of Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) in Africa, but there is a financing gap of $42 billion between male and female entrepreneurs.

    ‘’This gap must be closed, and quickly,” the AfDB president said, adding, “This financing effort for women is the most significant in the continent’s history.”

    The initiative, backed by the G7 nations, was based on three fundamental principles. The first was to improve women’s access to financing through innovative and adapted financial instruments, including guarantee mechanisms to support women entrepreneurs.

    In cooperation with strategic partners, the second principle was to provide capacity-building services to women entrepreneurs, including access to mentoring and training courses in entrepreneurship.

    AFAWA also assists financial institutions in responding to specific needs of women-led businesses through specially adapted financial and non-financial products.

    The third principle was improving the legal and regulatory environment, eliminating obstacles that specifically affect women by engaging in policy dialogue with governments, central banks, and other institutions.

    The press conference on AFAWA was part of the G7 Summit’s emphasis on reducing inequality, specifically including a renewed partnership with Africa.

    This partnership will be highlighted by creating sustainable employment and supporting entrepreneurship, particularly women entrepreneurs.

    France holds the presidency of the G7 this year, and Macron is championing gender equality as a major theme of his five-year term.

  • Fayemi seeks AfDB’s backing for Ado-Ekiti-Akure road, others

    THE African Development Bank (AfDB) is ready to provide technical and financial support for Ekiti State Government to upgrade its infrastructure.

    The support includes fixing the Ado-Ekiti-Akure road, which is in a terrible state.

    Other projects, which the AfDB is willing to support, are the Ekiti Airport, the Ekiti Knowledge Zone (a smart city to promote knowledge economy) and the agriculture processing zone project, all geared towards improving infrastructure and socio–economic growth.

    These are some of the highlights of a meeting between the Ekiti State government team led by Governor Kayode Fayemi and the AfDB President, Dr. Akinwunmi Adesina, at the organisation’s headquarters in Abidjan, Cote d’Ivoire at the weekend.

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    The meeting was attended by top officials of the AfDB, including its Senior Vice President, Charles Boamah; three Vice Presidents, Celestine Monga (VP and Chief Economist); Vivienne Banke (VP Agriculture, Human and Social Development)  and Ms Bajabulile Tshabalala (VP Finance and Chief Finance Officer); Senior Director for Nigeria, Ebrima Faal; among others.

    Chief Press Secretary to the Governor Yinka Oyebode said the meeting reviewed the project proposals tabled by Fayemi and resolved to  support the government to actualise them, in line with the bank’s mission of supporting national and sub national governments’ development plans.

    As a follow-up to the meeting, a team of technical experts from AfDB headquarters would be in Ado-Ekiti in the next few weeks for further discussion and assessment of the various projects. The visit and other activities that would follow would prepare the ground for the bank’s final decision.

    Fayemi, who is also the chairman of the Nigeria Governors Forum (NGF), told the bank’s team his administration decided to seek AfDB’s support for the projects that are crucial to the infrastructure and industrial development of Ekiti State so as to improve the fortune of the state, reposition it as a destination of choice for investment and create jobs.

    Adesina said the bank is excited about the plans for job creation, especially for the youth and the plans to improve the stock of infrastructure. He said the menace of kidnapping and banditry in the country would be arrested with more investments and job opportunities for the youths.

  • AfDB, South Korea to collaborate on technology

    The African Development Bank (AfDB) is partnering South Korea to step up technology transfers to Africa.Its President, Dr. Akinwumi Adesina, made this known during a three-day visit to South Korea.

    Adesina said: “The future is going to be an exponentially different,” noting that the bank intends to “explore the creation of a strategic partnership with Korea that could lead to the creation of a Korea-Africa research and training Drone Centre that could help pave the way for Africa’s fourth Industrial Revolution”.

    Adesina said the AfDB was determined to expand the use of drones in agriculture in Africa. “What we do in Africa today will determine global food security tomorrow,” he said.

    The AfDB boss noted that it was important that the technological partnership with Korea translates into capacity building on the ground, through training, so that Africa can industrialise, build or assemble drones.

    During the visit, representatives of Busan Metropolitan City, Busan Techno Park, and Korea’s Green Technology Centre said there was huge potential for cooperation and immense opportunities for job-creating bankable projects.

    According to the Global Strategy Division, Green Technology Centre Director, Hyung-Ju Kim, “Korean expertise can provide a practical and pragmatic solution to a wide range of Africa’s most pressing technology needs.”

     

  • Osinbajo launches AfDB-funded $258m NE recovery intervention

    The African Development Bank (AfDB) and the Federal Government  have launched the Inclusive Basic Service Delivery Livelihood Empowerment Integrated Programme – a $258million comprehensive mult-isectoral intervention aimed at bolstering rehabilitation efforts in North eastern Nigeria.

    Vice President Yemi Osinbajo launched the program at the bank’s premises in Abuja. The launch was attended by governors of five northeast states, ministers, development partners and key stakeholders.

    “It has been gratifying to note how enthusiastically our friends and partners have rallied to our support, mobilising resources to tackle the crisis in the northeast, Osinbajo said, adding, “we would like to express the profound appreciation of the Federal Government to the bank for being a partner in progress with us.

    “When the story of the region’s recovery is told, the work of the AfDB will occupy a well-merited and prominent chapter,” Osibanjo said, lauding the programme as a landmark intervention in support of the region, which has suffered devastation from insurgency.

    The AfDB stated clearly that state governments of the northeast will implement  its $258million programme with the Federal Government’s support.

    In terms of impact, 14 million affected people including 2.3 million internal displaced persons (IDPs) will benefit from health, nutrition, education, water and sanitation services.

    The programme is targeting 9,000 IDPs and heads of vulnerable households, who will receive direct economic assistance, while 2,023 small and medium scale enterprises (79 per cent women) will receive business development support. About 2,900 construction artisans and mechanics in the informal sector will also get help to improve their productivity. The initiative envisages that 2,000 unskilled youth will be trained for employment.

    AfDB President, Akinwumi Adesina highlighted the programme’s emphasis on inclusivity.

    Represented by the bank’s Senior Director in Nigeria, Ebrima Faal, the president said: “It incorporates special gender considerations by ensuring that women are active participants in all stages of the project and providing training for women and youth entrepreneurs to increase their chances for employment and business opportunities.

    “The bank has remained a strong partner of the Federal and state governments in their efforts to restore livelihoods in the northeast. For instance, throughout the period of heightened conflict in the region, the bank intervened with two critical programmes in Yobe and Taraba states. The experience gained and lessons learned from implementing these two projects are incorporated in the design of the current intervention.”

    Bauchi State Governor, Mohammed Abubakar thanked the bank for putting together what he described as the first integrated and inclusive plan for rebuilding of Northeast Nigeria.

    “Part of the underlying factors that led to the crazy phenomenon of Boko Haram is illiteracy and lack of economic capacity. For the first time, we have now a program that attempts to address all these issues at once,” he said.

    The intervention seeks to reduce fragility aggravated by the Boko Haram insurgency by contributing to emergency transition, recovery and peacebuilding efforts. It focuses on three main components – service delivery, economic recovery and institutional strengthening. It also includes support to ensure increased access of the poor and vulnerable to basic social services in water, sanitation, hygiene, health and education, as well as livelihood opportunities, food security and strengthened safety net systems.

  • AFDB approves €7 million investment in Partech Africa Fund

    The African Development Bank (AfDB) has  approved €7 million equity investment in Partech Africa Fund to  increase  investment funding to Africa’s entrepreneurs .

    A statement from the bank said Partech is a Venture Capital Fund dedicated to investing in tech-enabled, innovative, high growth potential and talented entrepreneurs operating early stage companies and applying relevant technologies to address fundamental market constraints with potential to scale across the continent.

    With hubs/offices in Dakar, Nairobi and planed for Lagos, the Fund is targeting nine Sub-Saharan African countries (South Africa, Ghana, Nigeria, Ivory Coast, Cameroun, Senegal, Tanzania, Kenya and Uganda).

    According to the bank, the fund focuses on  financial inclusion,such as fintech, insurtech, pay as you go, off-grid energy as  online and mobile consumers.

    The other areas are  tech adoption in enterprises ,especially in industry, education, logistics and transport, health, and agriculture value chain applications.

    The  Fund successfully completed its first close in January  this year with €71 million and is targeting a total fund size of at least €100 million through a 2nd round expected to be closed by October/November this year.

    Read Also: AfDB approves $15m equity fund for SMEs

    Under the framework of the Boost Africa Programme, AfDB will provide  €7 million equity investment in the second close.  The contributions from both the African Development Bank and the European Investment Bank form part of the Boost Africa Programme, which assists Partech in its fund raising.  The Bank is expected to have a seat in the Advisory Board of the Fund.

    The fund’s focus aligns well with the Boost Africa objectives to invest in high growth innovative start-ups with a strong social / Base of the Pyramid outreach and impact.

    The investment strategy is also in line with the Bank’s Private Sector Operations strategy linking entrepreneurship, investment and economic growth with poverty alleviation and sustainable growth development outcomes and impact.

  • Beware of adverse effects of common currency, Emefiele warns

    Once again, countries of the West Africa Sub-region have failed to meet all the convergence criteria for a common currency and unified monetary zone.

    However, the Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) Mr. Godwin Emefiele has cautioned member countries of the sub-region not to let the desire for a common currency and economic prosperity for their people blind them to the adverse and contagion factors associated with a unified monetary area and common currency.

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    Speaking at the 37th Meeting of the Committee of Governors of Central Banks of the West African Monetary Zone in Abuja Thursday, Emefiele cautioned that “our desire for greater economic prosperity for our people through a common monetary union must not vitiate our awareness of the potential adverse and contagion factors associated with unified monetary area and common currency.”

    Specifically, Emefiele noted that “the unfolding trade war between the United States, China and the West portends both opportunities and challenges for our region’s economy, depending on how we approach it individually as nations. Nonetheless, while the shocks to individual economies might vary in magnitude and intensity, it might yet be an opportunity for us to look inward and strategize on how best to fill the trade gap that would ensue.”

    Going forward, Nigeria’s Central Bank Governor advocated that “now is the time to create the West African Monetary Zone (WAMZ) Commission to drive our common interests and aspirations. We must intensify our level of cooperation and collaboration through strong bonds to work as a unit within the ECOWAS monetary union programme to achieve our shared objective.”

    Emefiele stated that “it has become imperative for us to bring this collective resolve to bear as we embark on a thorough review of the economic conditions of member countries vis-a-vis their levels of preparedness for the monetary union and economic integration of the sub-region.”

    For this reason, the report of the 33rd Meeting of Joint Technical Committee that is scheduled to be submitted in course of the WAMZ meetings he said “should be meticulously and objectively studied for the purpose of gaining more clarity on the level of preparedness of member countries for regional integration.”

    In addition, he said “the discussion should identify existing or potential impediments to the realization of the deadline for the commencement of the currency union. This is imperative in order for us to jointly find viable options in accelerating progress towards achieving the integration objective.”

    Emefiele added that he is of the conviction that “deeper integration of our different economies and harmonization of our currencies, amongst others, will help in stabilizing our economies by accelerating investment and trade in the sub-region; minimize transaction costs and bring about quality employment opportunities with improved standard of living for our people.”

    For these reasons he called on every WAMZ member country “to continue to work towards reversing the structural and institutional deficiencies that have continued to stalemate this unification process by working hand-in-hand with our various fiscal authorities in narrowing budget deficits, suboptimal fiscal performance, and encouraging investments in infrastructure amongst others.”

    This meeting he admonished should serve as a veritable opportunity for member countries to “review our progress and come up with workable strategies aimed at accomplishing our common objective.”

    He added that “while we focus on the uniform achievement of the convergence criteria, we also must not lose sight of the importance of sustainable real convergence in the sub-region. This, in effect, is to ensure the attainment of optimal mix between the sustainability of monetary cooperation and the conditionality attached to the attainment of the macroeconomic convergence criteria.”

    In her presentation of the summary of the progress report on the implementation of the West African Monetary Institute (WAMI) work programme, the Director General of WAMI Dr. Mrs Ngozi Egbuna disclosed that as at December, 2017, the assessment of member states’ performance on the primary convergence criteria showed that none of the countries met all the four criteria.

    However, the average performance of the member countries of the zone improved during the year under review.

    According to her, The Gambia, Guinea and Nigeria attained three criteria each. The Gambia missed the fiscal deficit criterion, Guinea slipped on the gross external reserve and Nigeria missed inflation criteria. Ghana and Liberia achieved two criteria each. Ghana missed the inflation and fiscal deficit criteria, while Liberia missed inflation and Central bank financing criteria. Sierra Leone met one criterion, the gross external reserve.

    In an attempt to initiate the development of the bond market in The Gambia, Guinea, Liberia and Sierra Leone, WAMI intends to seek funding from development partners to i) deepen primary markets and short term instruments, ii) develop secondary markets and long term instruments, and iii) improve debt market regulatory systems and broaden the investor base.

    With regards to financial market integration, Ngozi Egbuna noted that significant progress had been realized including the following: Having successfully implemented the phase l(Sponsored Access) programmes of the capital market integration, with the successful execution of transactions between CAL Brokers (Ghana) and United Capital Securities (Nigeria) for various quoted securities, activities on cross border trading has remained sluggish due to low level sensitization and difficulties in cross border settlement.

    The African Development Bank (AfDB) funded WAMZ payments system development project she said “continued to have significant impact in beneficiary countries. The transition from hitherto cumbersome payment and clearing to a more rapid and convenient system, has improved the payment landscape and served as a spring board for new innovations in these countries.”

    Subsequently, in line with the directive of the convergence council, WAMI, convened a meeting to revive the Zonal Payment System Committee. The Committee developed a terms of reference that encapsulated a wide range of issues relating to the development of payment system in the Zone and a specific mandate to foster coordination and integration of payments and settlements in the Zone.

  • AfDB approves $15m equity investment in Nigeria, others

    The African Development Bank ( AfDB ) says it has approved 15 million dollars for equity investment in Verod Capital Growth Fund III, a private equity fund for investments in high growth middle market companies.

    The bank said on Friday that the figure was approved by its Board of Directors for companies in in Nigeria, Ghana, Liberia, Sierra Leone and the Gambia.

    The bank said the fund’s investments would be in companies in consumer driven sectors including light industrials, fast moving consumer goods, education, financial services and agro processing.

    It also said the ticket size for each investment would be between 5 million dollars and 20 million dollars.

    Read Also: AfDB: Nigeria, others spend $35b yearly to import food

    Mr Abdu Mukhtar, the African Development Bank’s Director of Industrial and Trade Development, AfDB, said the fund would help accelerate investments in small and medium scale enterprises (SMEs) in the West African region.

    “This is key to job and wealth creation, knowledge transfer and scaling up of local businesses.

    “The Fund will provide an important vehicle to growing SMEs in Africa, which are a key pillar to the continent’s industrialization drive,” Mukhtar added, in a statement posted on the bank’s website.