The 130th BOAD Board of Directors’ meeting approves new loans amounting to XOF98.56 billion

Habibou DIOPNews

Dakar, 19 May 2022. The Board of Directors of the West African Development Bank (BOAD) gathered in-person for its 130th ordinary meeting in Dakar (Senegal) under the chairmanship of Mr. Serge Ekue, Chairman of the Board and President of BOAD.

The Board approved six (6) loan proposals involving XOF98.56 billion. These new loans bring BOAD’s total commitments (all operations combined) to XOF6,845.8 billion since commencement of its operations in 1976.

The approved loans relate to the partial funding of the following projects:

  • Local economies development support programme (PADEL) (Phase 3) in Burkina Faso. In order to contribute towards improved socio-economic conditions for the grassroots communities in the regions of Burkina Faso, the project will focus on the development of job-creating sectors in the communities, and basic infrastructure for the benefit of the population and micro-enterprises. It will further contribute towards strengthening the social protection and resilience of vulnerable households and their integration in the economic system. Loan amount: XOF15 billion;
  • Phase 2 of the ruminant herd sedentarization project (PROSER) in the Republic of Benin. The project involves freeing up and securing 57,000 ha of land for the benefit of livestock farmers and agro-pastoralists for fodder production, setting up a pilot pastoral camp and strengthening 126 livestock raisers’ camps. It is also planned to promote industrial units, to set up production kits and build the capacities of livestock raisers. Loan amount: XOF17.5 billion;
  • Stormwater drainage network reinforcement project in the city of Ouagadougou (development of the Bangr Weogo urban park outlet) in Burkina Faso. The project seeks to contribute to improved living conditions of the populations of the city of Ouagadougou. More specifically, the project aims to facilitate the drainage of rainwater in the city of Ouagadougou by reducing very significantly the rate of flooded dwellings during the rainy seasons. It will contribute to increased number of people with access to a sustainable sanitation service. Loan amount: XOF4.5 billion;
  • Construction of 1,529 classrooms to replace temporary shelters and ancillary works (second lot of the temporary shelter replacement programme “PRORAP”) in the Republic of Senegal. The project will cover the 14 regions of Senegal and will contribute to meet the demand for classrooms and improved quality of the school environment. It aims at providing over 85,000 disadvantaged children with better learning conditions and reducing the school drop-out rate by 50% in the schools concerned. Loan amount: XOF25 billion;
  • Construction of a 120 MW combined cycle thermal power plant by Malicounda Power SAS at Malicounda in Senegal. This power capacity will be made available to SENELEC as from June 2022. It will contribute towards improved service quality in the power supply sector and ensure better coverage of demand while securing the country’s power supply. Loan amount: XOF6.56 billion;
  • Construction and equipment of four (4) senior and one (1) junior high schools of excellence with boarding facilities for girls in the Republic of Côte d’Ivoire. The project’s overall objective is to promote excellence through the building of dedicated school infrastructure to increase girls’ enrolment and completion rate at the secondary school level. An overall capacity of over 1,600 students is targeted, including 1,200 boarders. The four senior high schools will be built in the townships of Abengourou, Divo, Korhogo and Man, whist the junior high school will be constructed at Bouna. Loan amount: XOF30 billion.

A readjustment of the characteristics of the loan granted for the partial funding of the infrastructure extension and modernization project of the Felix Houphouët-Boigny International Airport in Abidjan (Côte d’Ivoire) by AERIA SA, was also approved.

The Board further gave a favourable opinion on the short-term measures to strengthen BOAD’s equity.

In his closing remarks, Chairman Serge Ekue, on behalf of the Board of Directors, expressed his gratitude to the Senegalese authorities for the means deployed for the organization of this meeting under congenial conditions.

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