IFC issues P260m bond to fund Botswana firms
Brian Benza | Friday December 8, 2017 17:20
The bond would be the first listing by a multilateral institution on the local bourse.
“The issuer seeks to bring together domestic and foreign private capital and experienced management and thereby create conditions conducive to the flow of private capital (domestic and foreign) into productive investments in its developing member countries.
“On December 1, 2017, the programme was approved by the Botswana Stock Exchange (BSE) in terms of the BSE Listing Requirements.
“The notes will be listed on or about December 13, 2017,” the IFC said in a statement.
The P260 million notes are the first batch of IFC’s P10 billion Pan-African Domestic Medium Term Note Programme (DMTNP).
In partnership with private investors, the IFC assists in financing the establishment, improvement, and expansion of private sector enterprises by making investments where sufficient private capital is not otherwise available on reasonable terms.
IFC is an international organisation, established in 1956 to further economic growth in its developing member countries by promoting private sector development.
The IFC recently convened key stakeholders in Gaborone to support new approaches to private sector development and encourage increased investment in the country.
IFC officials considered with business executives, government officials and regulators, development partners and civil society, how they could work together to better support Botswana’s national development objectives consistent with the World Bank Group’s country strategy.
Sectors covered during the presentations included financial markets, infrastructure, mining, manufacturing and agribusiness.
The IFC says it can serve as a catalyst to spur private investment in markets like Botswana, and the World Bank Group is committed to helping attract private sector solutions.
IFC works closely with the World Bank and MIGA to bring together tools and instruments that can reduce risk, create new markets, and encourage companies and investors to invest in new projects.
“A strong and engaged private sector is essential to boosting shared prosperity and ending extreme poverty,” said Xavier Furtado, the World Bank Country Representative to Botswana.
IFC is the largest global development institution focussed on the private sector in emerging markets. Working with more than 2,000 businesses worldwide, the organisation says it uses capital, expertise, and influence to create markets and opportunities in the toughest areas of the world. In the financial year 2017, the IFC says it delivered a record $19.3 billion in long-term financing for developing countries, leveraging the power of the private sector to help end poverty and boost shared prosperity.