Nairobi, July 26th, 2019 – With today’s signing of a memorandum of understanding between the Eastern and Southern African Trade and Development Bank (TDB) and the Korea Overseas Infrastructure & Urban Development Corporation (KIND), the door has effectively been opened between both institutions to cooperate on infrastructure financing in the region TDB serves.

TDB and KIND have agreed to cooperate to facilitate project and infrastructure development, and to leverage Korea’s innovative experience in infrastructure and urban development through KIND. This can be via technical as well as financial advisory assistance, to support infrastructure projects, as well as feasibility studies to bring infrastructure transactions to a bankable stage.

Infrastructure development is one of the key areas where the Bank deploys its development financing and pursues its vision to advance the economic development, integration and prosperity of its region. Among others, TDB has invested in ports, power generation plants, ICT infrastructure, heavy manufacturing, regional airlines, as well as agribusiness and tourism. The Bank has also arranged $4.2bn in sovereign loans which are being used to finance various infrastructure activities in the region.

KIND is a newly established organization by the Korean Government to proactively support global public-private partnerships and infrastructure and urban development for sustainable growth in emerging markets.

“TDB recognizes and appreciates Korean savoir-faire in the area of infrastructure. Through this MOU, we expect to facilitate cooperation between KIND and our Member States in infrastructure and sustainable economic development” says TDB President and Chief Executive Admassu Tadesse. “With this signing today” he adds, “we look forward to further engagements with the Korean Government and private sector”.

KIND President and CEO Kyong-goo Hur commented that “since the world is facing drastic climate changes and rapid urbanization today, the need for infrastructure investment is emerging greater than ever with the gap between infrastructure demand and supply hardly to be filled in the near future. The highest priority, therefore, has been attached to infrastructure investment not only in Korea but also in other numerous countries on this globe.

Furthermore, “KIND is now ready to serve as a facilitator for efficient Public-Private Partnership (“PPP”) projects worldwide, collaborating with various global PPP players to help fill such gap. As required in each of our partner countries, KIND will devise and customize its way of support so that Korea’s rich experiences and technical expertise of private and public sectors could be fully channeled into the entire process of PPP project development including project identification, project structuring, construction, O&M, and finance. This KIND way of support will also ensure economically, environmentally and socially viable development, thereby creating a virtuous circle of sustainable growth of partner countries.”