The African Development Bank (AfDB) and the Netherlands-based ILX Management Fund are pooling their strategies to accelerate sustainable development in Africa. The two institutions recently signed an agreement in Amsterdam to finance projects in the areas of clean energy, sustainable infrastructure, green finance and smart agriculture.
“Together with ILX, we are determined to mobilise more capital for the private sector on the continent based on our strong track record in structuring and financing high-impact projects. The new investments we will catalyze will focus on the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), particularly the economic, social and governance (ESG) triptych,” explains Hassatou N’Sele, the AfDB Vice President and Chief Financial Officer.
According to the financial institution based in Abidjan, Ivory Coast, this project is part of its “High 5” programme launched in 2015. It aims at improving the quality of life of African populations through the acceleration of MDGs 11 and 13 on sustainable cities and the fight against climate change respectively. This will be made possible by the recent $1.05 billion in financial support to ILX from APG Asset Management, the largest pension fund in the Netherlands, and the Dutch investment company Achmea Investment Management.
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In addition, there are pledges of funding from other development partners. These include the Dutch Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the Kreditanstalt für Wiederaufbau (KfW), via the German Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ), and the UK Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO).
Benoit-Ivan Wansi