AFDB to raise $8bn from capital markets in 2018

By Etuka Sunday

The Board of Directors of the African Development Bank (AFDB) has approved the Bank’s 2018 borrowing program for USD 8 billion to be raised from capital markets.
The Bank provides financial assistance to its member countries by mobilizing resources primarily from the capital markets under its annual borrowing program.
The African Development Bank is rated triple-A by all the major international rating agencies (Fitch, Moody’s and Standard and Poor’s) and accesses a wide array of capital markets with the bulk of its issuance in US dollars, Euros, Australian dollars and pound sterling.
The African Development Bank has also shown a strong commitment to socially responsible investment programs with a proven track record of successful issuance in green bonds over the past five years.
“We have stepped up our profile in the international capital markets and will continue to raise funds across the globe to provide cost effective resources to our clients” stated Acting Vice President Finance and Treasurer of the AfDB Group Hassatou N’Sele.
The Bank recently launched a Social Bond program focused on meeting the critical development challenges that Africa is facing and that are at the heart of the Bank’s social mandate.
The AfDB has also used its ‘High 5’ operational priorities as a platform to launch theme bonds in 2017, including ‘Improve the Quality of the Life for the People of Africa’ bonds, ‘Industrialize Africa’ bonds and a ‘Light Up and Power Africa’ bond for which it received an award.
The AfDB will continue to explore the prospects for African currency bonds to facilitate the financing of its local currency operations and promote the development of domestic bond markets across Africa.