Djibouti City, 17 June 2021 – The Eastern and Southern African Trade and Development Bank (TDB) and Fonds Souverain de Djibouti SA (FSD – Djibouti Sovereign Fund) have, today, signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the purpose of advancing cooperation in select economic sectors between Djibouti and TDB Member States.
The agreement establishes a framework to collaborate on assessing the financing of transactions in TDB Member States in energy, infrastructure, agribusiness, manufacturing, social infrastructure, health, education, transport and logistics through a variety of financing structures.
In addition to promoting TDB’s business development interests in Djibouti and Horn of Africa countries, FSD will examine the possibility to invest TDB Class B shares which offer attractive financial returns and impact.
“With Djibouti’s Caisse Nationale de Securité Sociale (CNSS) having become TDB’s 18th institutional shareholder earlier this year, we are pleased to expand yet again our network of partnerships in the country via this MoU with Fonds Souverain de Djibouti (FSD)” says Admassu Tadesse, TDB Group Managing Director and CEO. “Cooperation with FSD is expected to be conducive to scaling-up investment in our region, and to help foster economic and social development in Djibouti and the Horn of Africa.”
Commenting on the signing of this Agreement, FSD Acting Chief Executive Officer, Neima Omar, declared “The signing of this MoU with TDB is an important moment; it marks an obvious and natural relationship between TDB and FSD, justified by the sharing of a common vision and objectives at the service of the economic development of Djibouti and the region. With this agreement, TDB and FSD are implementing a win-win collaboration, through TDB’s participation in the financing of strategic projects led by FSD and FSD’s participation in future TDB’s securities issues. We are convinced of the relevance and success of the collaboration between our two institutions.”
Ragueb Farah, FSD Acting Chief Investment Officer said “We are eager to enhance strategic partnership with financial institutions that are aligned with our vision.
FSD is a sovereign fund which adheres to the principles of Santiago and whose objective is to invest in an ESG way in structuring projects and stimulating the private sector by creating wealth and jobs. We aim to broaden to new horizons, to new opportunities, by being the gateway to virtuous development in the Horn of Africa, and beyond. An important milestone has been achieved this morning, toward many others.”
Mary Kamari, TDB Corporate Affairs and Investor Relations Executive added, “we welcome the opportunity to join forces with FSD to collaborate on the financing of transformational projects in Djibouti and the region. We also look forward to welcoming FSD to our community of institutional shareholders in the future.”
TDB Group has been active in Djibouti namely in the manufacturing sector, where it financed the expansion of a cement company, as well as in the health sector, with the financing of medical equipment for advanced imagery services for a specialized clinic and diagnostic centre in Djibouti City. As part of its response to the pandemic, TDB Group donated personal protective equipment manufactured in the TDB region under its Covid-19 Emergency Response Programme (CERP), in support of Djibouti’s Ministry of Health’s efforts to combat the Covid-19 pandemic in the country.
About TDB
Established in 1985, the Eastern and Southern African Trade and Development Bank (TDB) is a multilateral, treaty-based, investment-grade development finance institution, with 41 sovereign and institutional shareholders and assets of USD 7.2 bn. TDB serves 22 economies in its region, with the mandate to finance and foster trade, regional economic integration, and sustainable development.
TDB is part of the TDB Group, which also comprises TDF (the Trade and Development Fund), ESATF (the Eastern and Southern African Trade Fund), TCI (TDB Captive Insurance), and the TDB Academy.
www.tdbgroup.org
About Fonds Souverain de Djibouti (FSD)
The Fonds Souverain de Djibouti (FSD) is an investment fund, created in the form of a joint stock company by Law No. 075/AN/20/8th L of March 29, 2020, whose main objective is to invest in the economic tissue of the Republic of Djibouti through projects with a high potential for job creation in priority sectors such as new technologies, industry, logistics, energy, infrastructure, real estate, tourism, health, agriculture, fisheries, mining activities and financial services.
The FSD aims to modernize the country’s economy, to boost the growth of the country by relying in particular on a competitive private sector.
One of its missions also consist on increasing investment and develop economic partnerships in the Horn of Africa region.
Media Contacts
Anne-Marie Iskandar, Senior Communications Officer
Corporate Affairs and Investor Relations
Trade and Development Bank
Anne-Marie.Iskandar@tdbgroup.org
Hala Khaled, Communications Officer
Fonds souverain de Djibouti
fsd-hkaled@outlook.fr
