By Ebi Kesiena
The African Development Bank Group (AfDB) and UK Export Finance (UKEF), the United Kingdom’s export credit agency, have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to strengthen cooperation on co-financing projects across Africa and mobilise additional resources for the continent’s sustainable development.
The agreement was signed recently in Conakry, Guinea, by Abdul Kamara, Officer in Charge of the Vice President of the African Development Bank Group, and Tim Reid, Chief Executive of UK Export Finance at the sidelines of the fifth UK–West and Central Francophone Africa Trade and Investment Forum (WCAF V) and marks the first framework agreement between the two institutions.
“Africa’s financing needs call for partnerships that bring additional capital to the continent at scale. This agreement with UK Export Finance gives our cooperation a structured framework and opens new opportunities to finance the infrastructure and investments that will drive Africa’s growth,” Kamara said.
The MoU establishes a framework for the two institutions to identify, assess and develop co-financing opportunities for both sovereign and non-sovereign operations in the Bank’s regional member countries. The partnership by will leverage the respective financial instruments and expertise of the AfDB and UKEF to mobilise additional capital for strategic investments across the continent.
Priority areas identified under the partnership include energy, infrastructure, water and sanitation, healthcare, digital infrastructure, critical minerals, supply-chain resilience, agriculture and trade finance.
“This agreement deepens the relationship between UK Export Finance and the African Development Bank Group. By combining our financial instruments and expertise, we can unlock greater co-financing for the infrastructure, energy and trade priorities that matter most to Africa’s growth,” Reid said.
“UKEF is committed to supporting that ambition, and this partnership will help us do so at greater scale,” he added.
The partnership forms part of the African Development Bank Group’s broader efforts to mobilise capital at scale in support of its strategic priorities under the Bank’s Four Cardinal Points.
It also builds on the long-standing relationship between the United Kingdom and the African Development Bank Group. The UK joined the African Development Fund (ADF) in 1973 and became a member of the African Development Bank in 1983. It remains a major contributor to the ADF, the Bank Group’s concessional financing window.
Established in 1919 as the world’s first export credit agency, UK Export Finance provides finance and insurance to support British businesses. The agency has expanded its activities across Africa, supporting trade and investment while helping UK companies access opportunities in African markets.
