BIZ TYME
Pan-African Housing Financier,Shelter Afrique, has signed a 20 Million USD [KSH 1.73 Billion] agreement with the African Development Bank [AfDB]to boost its cash bank for housing development projects in Kenya and Africa.
AfDB is among its primary shareholders; the signing follows the agreement of the lender’s Board of Directors and those from AfDB to approve the line of credit for Shelter Afrique in December 2013.
The agreement is intended to boost the trade finance instruments to small and medium enterprises involved in real estate and construction related activities in Africa.
“Every day we continue to find ways to make housing a little more accessible, a little more affordable, every day we are asking questions and every day we are finding the answers and with strong partnerships with organisations like AfDB, we know we are not too far from finding lasting solutions,” said Mr. Ba.
The agreement sees Shelter Afrique begin a strong second quarter of the year having already signed a 3.7EURO line with Agence Francaise de Developpment [AFD] for its social housing programme and floating a bond in the FCFA region that was oversubscribed by 163 percent.
The deal signals the realization in the industry that the demand for housing is increasing on the continent and there is a need to find better and more efficient ways to bridge the gap.
“Housing Industry is experiencing exponential growth and urbanization and the bulge of a growing middle class which all hamper the provision of adequate housing in Africa. AfDB would like to call on government, the private sector and all interested parties to rise to occasion and address housing as it was a key requirement for development,” said Mr. Negatu
Shelter Afrique is also expected to create partnerships with other organisations that have trade finance products and who can bridge the financing gap in the industry, and those involved in trading/leasing of building materials and equipment.
Shelter Afrique is the only Pan-African development finance institution that exclusively promotes the development of the housing and real estate sector in Africa. It is backed by 44 member countries, the African Development Bank (AfDB) and the African Reinsurance Company (Africa RE). It currently has an active portfolio of projects in more than 30 African countries and it offers a wide range of financial products and advisory services to support the efficient delivery of affordable housing
