KfW and BOAD sign a credit agreement for the financing of Micro, Small and Medium-sized enterprises.

Dakar, 20 March 2019. Mr. Christian Adovelande, President of the West African Development Bank (BOAD) and Mr. Michael Wehinger, KfW Director for West Africa, have signed a credit agreement amounting to EUR 150 million, or XOF98.39 billion. These resources will be used to grant refinancing facilities to credit institutions within the Union, which will in turn on-lend them to Micro, Small and Medium-sized Enterprises (MSMEs).

This credit facility, the third of its kind between the Bank and KfW, is the result of 38 years of cooperation between the two institutions. Since 1981, the cooperation with the KfW Group has resulted, inter alia, in the granting of several credit facilities amounting cumulatively to EUR 213.05 million, or XOF139.75 billion including EUR 10.67 million in the form of grants for financing and subsidizing interest rates on loans for climate change adaptation projects.

Overall, grants from the KfW Group helped refinance operations of WAEMU public non-commercial and private sectors, and in particular, small and medium-sized enterprises, which are wealth creators and economic growth drivers in WAEMU region.

In terms of technical cooperation, several BOAD missions have been conducted in KfW to learn from its experience. BOAD also benefited from technical assistance financed with KfW resources. In order to further strengthen this partnership, the two institutions have put in place a framework for collaboration by organizing KfW-BOAD open days; the first of its kind was held in Frankfurt from 27 February to 1 March 2019.

This line of credit brings to EUR 363.05 million, or XOF238.15 billion the total credit facilities from KfW Group to BOAD.

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