The Development Bank of Rwanda issued its inaugural SLB through an innovative credit enhancement mechanism structured and funded by the World Bank. This sets a scalable precedent for mobilizing private capital by derisking investor funds while releasing IDA resources for other projects.

This is the first time a development bank has issued an SLB globally, the first SLB in the Eastern Africa region, and the first time the Development Bank of Rwanda (BRD) has issued a bond.

Background

According to the United Nations, Africa needs 1.3 trillion dollars annually to achieve its Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) by 2030. That is a formidable task, given that concessional financing sources are becoming ever more scarce. Rwanda has incorporated its commitment to the SDGs in its national development agenda, Vision 2050.

The Development Bank of Rwanda (BRD) has been a long-standing partner and has played a crucial role in financing key development sectors in Rwanda. However, in addition to the borrowings from development financial institutions and its own capital, BRD requires mobilizing funding in larger volumes and at attractive conditions to continue to grow its lending capacity in a sustainable manner. In a bid to diversify their funding sources and mobilize private capital, BRD decided to enter for the first time into the domestic capital market with the collaboration of the World Bank as a part of the Access to Finance for Recovery and Resilience Project. […]