West African Development Bank and Africa Finance Corporation form strategic partnership to drive economic development

The MoU marks a pivotal alliance between two leading multilateral development finance institutions on the continent, signalling the intent of AFC and BOAD to foster economic alignment and equitable growth in West Africa.

Africa Finance Corporation (AFC) (www.AfricaFC.org), the continent’s leading infrastructure solutions provider, and the West African Development Bank (BOAD), a regional financial institution mandated to drive economic unity and advancement in West Africa, yesterday announced a strategic Memorandum of Understanding (MoU), solidifying their joint commitment to promote infrastructure and economic progress across Western African states.

Signed on the sidelines of the ongoing 28th United Nations Climate Change Conference (COP28), the MoU marks a pivotal alliance between two leading multilateral development finance institutions on the continent, signalling the intent of AFC and BOAD to foster economic alignment and equitable growth in West Africa. The collaboration aims to enhance both institutions’ investment footprint and impact in key sectors including telecommunications, energy and natural resources, ultimately enhancing economic unity in West Africa.

AFC and BOAD already have a history of co-investment in critical infrastructure projects in the region, including a EU30 million investment in the Kekeli Efficient Power project, Togo’s first gas-fired combined cycle power plant, which generates enough power to meet 35% of the country’s energy needs.

BOAD plays a key role in promoting economic integration and development across West Africa, with contributions spanning multiple sectors including agriculture, education, healthcare, and transportation, significantly enhancing infrastructure and social services. Celebrating its Golden Jubilee, BOAD is a key development finance institution within the West African Economic and Monetary Union (WEAMU), actively contributing to poverty reduction and overall improvement in the region’s quality of life.

AFC’s ability and focus on mobilising domestic African and international capital to develop and de-risk transformational projects is reflected in US$12.7 billion of investments across 36 African nations, marrying impact-at-scale with exceptional risk-adjusted returns. This has propelled AFC’s community of sovereign member nations to span three-quarters of the African continent. Bolstered by an impressive A3 credit rating from Moody’s, AFC stands alongside its partners as the primary investor and developer in numerous transformational infrastructure projects. Its recent joint acquisition of Lekela makes AFC with its partners the biggest investor in renewable energy generation on the continent. The platform owns seven wind farms and six solar assets across South Africa, Egypt and Senegal, with a combined gross capacity of 1.27GW powering over 1 million homes and offsetting 2.7 million tons of CO2 per annum.

AFC President & CEO Samaila Zubairu said: “Strategic collaboration between key multilateral institutions strengthens and enhances the critical role we play in driving development on the continent because governments cannot do the work alone. We look forward to working with BOAD to unlock infrastructure investment opportunities that will accelerate industrialisation, spur local manufacturing, enhance economic prosperity and transform lives.”

Serge Ekue, BOAD’s President and Chairman, said: “Access to energy at an affordable cost to all is crucial for better living conditions but also for reducing the cost of doing business and unlocking economic potential. This is a priority for BOAD and AFC. Therefore we are delighted to have signed today a Memorandum of Understanding, which will facilitate the sharing of technical knowledge, advice, skills and expertise, opening new avenues for cooperation in the energy sector while boosting investment within our region”.

As two leading African multilaterals, AFC and BOAD’s partnership will support both institutions in raising funds at competitive rates and to de-risk infrastructure projects through early-stage project development, project finance, and technical and financial advisory services, ensuring more projects get to bankability. The collaboration seeks to catalyse local and global investors to undertake projects in West Africa, unleashing a new era of economic prosperity in Western African countries.

Charting a Resilient Future: Insights from the 2023 West Africa Property Investment Summit

In a significant gathering of real estate influencers, the West Africa Property Investment Summit 2023, which took place on Wednesday, 23rd November, brought together leading figures from Kenya, Ghana, South Africa, and Nigeria. Under the theme “Rewriting the Narrative: Positioning & Strategies for the Future,” the summit served as a vibrant forum for in-depth discussions and strategic planning, aiming to shape the trajectory of West Africa’s real estate landscape: “Industry Leaders Chart Course For Resilient Future At The 2023 West African Property Investment Summit.”

Resilient Future: The 2023 West Africa Property Investment Summit

Resilience in the Face of Macroeconomic Challenges

One of the key speakers, Mr Tola Akinhanmi, the Head of Real Estate Finance at Stanbic IBTC, took centre stage to address the challenges posed by the current macroeconomic environment. Despite grappling with inflation, exchange rate volatility, and fluctuating interest rates, Akinhanmi’s message was one of resilience. He underscored the real estate sector’s intrinsic strength, characterizing it as a long-term asset class that provides essential business infrastructure supporting people’s livelihoods, work, and recreation. Akinhanmi highlighted Stanbic IBTC’s commitment to working closely with sponsors, understanding assets, and structuring solutions that ensure stability, allowing these assets to remain relevant through various economic cycles.

Optimism for 2024: A Balanced Outlook

Oladapo Runsewe, the Projects and City Reports Lead at Estate Intel provided a positive outlook for 2024. Citing statistics from the Nigerian Bureau of Statistics that indicated an increase in the real construction sector’s contributions to the GDP in the last quarter, Runsewe foresaw a balanced and positive effect on the market. He emphasized the inevitability of construction and development continuing, driven by the ongoing demand for housing and real estate investments. However, Runsewe highlighted the imperative for collaboration, urging industry participants and the government to join forces on a larger scale to address the substantial housing deficit, particularly in urban centres like Lagos.

Sustainability as a Driving Force

Temilola Shonola, Head of the Edge Program at the International Finance Corporation (IFC), brought attention to the importance of sustainable building practices. Shonola urged developers to embrace green building, dispelling the misconception that it is an expensive endeavour. She introduced the IFC’s free App designed to simplify the green certification process, making it accessible for builders looking to contribute to environmental sustainability. Shonola stressed that more of the market need to adopt green building practices, not only for environmental reasons but also as a means to reduce utility costs and ensure long-term impact.

Navigating the Commercial Real Estate Cycle

Pepler Sandri, the Director of Capital Markets at JLL, delved into the complexities of the commercial real estate cycle. Acknowledging the sector’s challenges and the impact of the global COVID-19 pandemic, Sandri painted a picture of recovery and resilience. He noted that Nigeria, like many other countries, faced unique macro issues affecting its recovery. Looking ahead, Sandri expressed optimism as interest rates stabilize, predicting a potential recovery in the next 6-12 months in global developed markets. However, he cautioned that Nigeria might experience a longer recovery period, echoing sentiments from Stanbic’s chief economist, who suggested a year or two before a strong trajectory toward recovery becomes evident.

Conclusion: A Call for Collaboration and Sustainable Growth

The West Africa Property Investment Summit 2023 provided an invaluable platform for industry leaders to share insights, strategies, and collaborative approaches to propel the real estate sector forward. As the summit concluded, attendees were left with a renewed sense of optimism and determination to navigate the ever-evolving landscape of West Africa’s property market. The resounding message from the summit echoed the need for collaboration, sustainability, and strategic planning to ensure a resilient and prosperous future for the region’s real estate industry. Read More

How Kora Improves Cross-Border Transactions For Businesses

Cross-border transactions are increasingly becoming popular without the concern of waiting days or transfer fees. This is due to the emergence of a fintech company like Kora, which makes cross-border payments simple, cheaper, faster, and easily accessible for businesses: “How Kora Improves Cross-Border Transactions For Businesses.”

A BCC Research of January 2023 revealed that the global cross-border payments market is expected to grow from $176.5 billion in 2021 to over $238.9 billion by 2027. The vehicle for this growth is fintech disruptors like Kora, which offers a digital platform and innovative messaging and settlement layers to improve cross-border business transactions.

How Kora Improves Cross-Border Transactions for Businesses

Ways Kora Is Changing Cross-Border Transactions For Businesses

• Improved Convenience

Kora enables you to make transactions fully on its platform, unlike the traditional method of visiting physical branches. This allows you to use the platform anytime and from anywhere without a glitch.

A simple user interface and streamlined onboarding characterize this platform to simplify cross-border transactions. It means you can use Kora to receive funds from your customers or transfer with its bulk payout, multicurrency payout, or mobile money options.

• Speed And Efficiency

Kora enables instant or same-day cross-border transactions, which is in the converse of the traditional settlement layers that can take days. Therefore, businesses can complete their transactions in less than one hour on this platform. You do not experience any form of delay in sending or receiving funds on this platform, irrespective of the amount. This is due to its high scalability and optimization of Kora.

• Lower Fees

This platform eliminates the meddlesome of third parties like banks and agents in the cross-border transfer chain. As such, it offers a relatively low transaction fee, which is often less than 1% of the transfer amount. This is a major perk of Kora compared to its contemporaries.

• Enhanced Transparency

Kora offers an advanced tracking dashboard that provides real-time access to your funds and the estimated delivery timelines. This is because the platform has state-of-the-art blockchain technology that provides complete transparency in the tracking of your funds. It helps to reconcile your income with expenses.

• Security And Compliance

Kora employs features like two-factor authentication (2FA) and other security measures to add extra security layers and protect user transactions and funds. This platform is in total adherence to global compliance standards to protect users’ funds and data.

• Reduced Foreign Exchange (FX) Risk

Cross-border transactions often involve multiple banks and currencies whose operations result in significant foreign exchange fees and currency volatility that create discrepancies between transferred and received funds.

This is largely the case when businesses in a particular country receive payments from another country.

However, Kora reduces foreign exchange risks that are associated with cross-border transactions by routing funds efficiently at the best exchange rate. On the other hand, Kora users can avoid foreign exchange concerns by using the multicurrency account on the platform that allows them to receive payments in currencies other than their local currency.

Conclusion

Cross-border payment is important to businesses as it enables their growth in the global market. But as digital payments continue to gain traction, there is a need for businesses to know how to leverage the technology to boost sales.

One major platform you can use for your cross-border transactions with your customers is Kora. This is due to the simplicity and scalability it offers you.

You can also start making cross-border transactions seamlessly when you create a Kora account now. [site]