The African Development Bank Group (www.AfDB.org) recently held meetings with a delegation from Swedfund, the Swedish state development finance institution. The talks aimed to bolster collaboration between the two institutions in order to expedite private sector development and climate action across Africa.
Maria Hakansson, the CEO of Swedfund, led the visit to the Bank Group after exploring potential synergies with the African Development Bank in 2023. The Bank and Swedfund have previously collaborated on financing independent power transmission line projects in sub-Saharan Africa.
The Swedfund delegation, which visited Côte d’Ivoire, expressed interest in expanding its presence in West Africa and recently opened an office in Abidjan. The African Development Bank Group stated that it was finalizing a new 10-year strategy that remains focused on the High 5s and mainstreaming gender and climate.
The Bank’s CFO and Vice President for Finance emphasized the importance of attracting private capital, and the Director of Non-Sovereign Operations and Private Sector expressed satisfaction with the existing collaboration. Discussions also touched on the support for the African Continental Free Trade Area.
There was mutual agreement to explore more co-financing opportunities, attract private sector participation, and scale up private sector engagement. The collaboration between the African Development Bank and Swedfund plays a vital role in mitigating risk for private sector development in line with the High 5s strategy.
