The ECOWAS Bank for Investment and Development (EBID) announced on Tuesday that it approved a funding package of €230 million and $10 million aimed at boosting small businesses, infrastructure, and sustainable development in West Africa. This came after EBID’s 91st Ordinary Board meeting presided over by Dr. George Agyekum Donkor, the bank’s president.
As a development bank of the 15-member Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS), EBID concentrates on both public and private investment with a vision towards regional advancement. The increase in funding is intended to unlock underfunded sectors and drive catalytic initiatives.
Some of the key allocations include a $50 million credit line to Nigeria’s Sterling Bank Limited targeted at enabling SMEs in health, education, agriculture, renewable energy, and transportation. In Benin, Bénin Cashew SA was granted a €10 million facility for the construction of five processing plants and a cashew balsam unit, which will process 50% of the country’s cashew output and is set to employ over 1,600 people under its agricultural development policy.
Mota-Engil Nigeria’s $180 million loan will finance the construction of the Kano-Maradi railway to link northern Nigeria with Niger for enhanced trade and mobility. The project is expected to provide 100,000 temporary jobs during the construction period and 20,000 permanent jobs after completion.
EBID indicated that these projects are aligned with UN Sustainable Development Goals on innovation in infrastructural development (SDG 9) and climate action (SDG 13). The investments equally show the bank’s commitment towards inclusive growth, regional trade, and economic resilience.
The bank maintains that increasing investments of this nature brings EBID’s cumulative investments in the region to $4.5 billion,” said the bank while highlighting the institution’s efforts towards fostering sustainable development and socio-economic integration in West Africa.
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