Africa Finance Corporation signs Zambia as a Member Country
October 27, 2017
[caption id="attachment_41242" align="alignleft" width="225"] Andrew Alli, CEO of AFC and Hon. Felix Mutati, Zambia' s Minister of Finance[/caption]
LUSAKA, Zambia, 25th October 2017,-/African Media Agency (AMA)/- Zambia, becomes the first Southern African member country of Africa
Finance Corporation (AFC), a leading development finance institution for infrastructure in Africa.
The accession of Zambia to AFC membership marks a significant milestone in the Corporation's mission to address Africa's infrastructure needs and build the foundation for robust economic development across the continent.
To date the Corporation has invested US$4.5 billion in projects across 28 African countries and in a wide range of sectors including power, telecommunications, transport and logistics, natural resources, and heavy industries.
Zambia's membership accession supports AFC's membership expansion strategy and the continued alignment of its country membership with its operational footprint. Zambia, which signed its letter of adherence on October 11, 2017 becomes the 16th member country of AFC. AFC's other members are: Nigeria, Guinea Bissau, Ghana, Sierra Leone, Gambia, Liberia, Guinea, Chad, Cape Verde, Gabon, Côte d'Ivoire, Rwanda, Uganda, Djibouti and Kenya.
Andrew Alli, CEO of AFC, commented on the announcement: "We are excited to welcome Zambia as the first Southern African member country of AFC. We believe that investment in, and sustainable delivery of infrastructure in "land-linked" Zambia, will accelerate intraregional trade and lead to stronger economic development and growth in Southern Africa in particular and Africa in general. This goal can only be achieved if adequate transport, power, telecommunications, and industrial infrastructure are available and are functional. This is where AFC steps in, and we are excited by the challenges and opportunities that lie ahead".
AFC already has a large presence in Zambia. To date, the Corporation has invested over US$150
Million in various projects in the power and downstream oil sectors. The Corporation has also provided trade finance to the Ministry of Finance for the importation of co-mingled oil products
for refining into refined petroleum products.
Speaking on the announcement, Hon. Felix Mutati, the Minister of Finance, noted that "Over the years, AFC has shown its strong commitment towards infrastructure and economic development in Zambia. Today, we are happy to formally accept the invitation to join the membership of AFC. We look forward to greater engagement with the Corporation and their continued support in the delivery of signature infrastructure projects in Zambia."
Hon. Given Lubinda, Minister of Justice also commented that "Zambia is pleased to join the
membership of AFC and we look forward to a fruitful partnership."
AFC, an investment grade multilateral finance institution, was established in 2007 with an equity capital base of US$1 billion, to be the catalyst for private sector infrastructure investment across
Africa. With a current balance sheet size of approximately US$3.5billion, AFC is the second highest investment grade rated multilateral financial institution in Africa with an A3/P2 (Stable outlook) rating from Moody's Investors Service. AFC successfully raised US$750 million in 2015 and US$500 million in 2017; out of its Board-approved US$3 Billion Global Medium Term Note (MTN) Programme. Both issuances were oversubscribed and attracted investors from Asia, Europe and the USA.
AFC's investment approach combines specialist industry expertise with a focus on financial and technical advisory, project structuring, project development and risk capital to address Africa's infrastructure development needs and drive sustainable economic growth. AFC invests in high quality infrastructure assets that provide essential services in the core infrastructure sectors of power, natural resources, heavy industry, transport, and telecommunications.
