The Arab Bank for Economic Development in Africa (BADEA) has taken another decisive step in expanding its footprint across the continent, sealing a USD 150 million financing deal with the Government of Uganda to bolster private sector growth.
The agreements were signed in Kigali, Rwanda, on the sidelines of the 41st Board of Governors meeting of the Trade and Development Bank Group (TDB Group), with BADEA President H.E. Abdullah Almusaibeeh and Uganda’s Minister of Finance, Planning, and Economic Development, H.E. Matia Kasaija, presiding over the ceremony.
Two-thirds of the funding ,USD 100 million will be channelled through the Uganda Development Bank Limited (UDB), the country’s national development finance institution, to spur high-impact sectors such as agro-processing, infrastructure, manufacturing, health, and education. The remainder will support other priority areas under Uganda’s National Development Plan, with a focus on empowering women and youth-led enterprises. The facility’s concessional terms aim to ease the cost of borrowing for small and medium-sized enterprises, which often face prohibitive interest rates in local markets.
For Uganda, the deal represents a significant injection of affordable capital into industries that are central to its economic transformation strategy. For BADEA, it marks the latest in a string of strategic investments designed to deepen the bank’s engagement with Africa’s private sector and accelerate sustainable growth.
“This agreement is a powerful example of how governments can leverage BADEA’s financial instruments to empower the private sector and advance national development goals,” said Almusaibeeh.
The Uganda package is anchored in BADEA’s 2030 Strategy, which calls for diversified investments in both public and private sectors, with an emphasis on inclusivity, value addition, and regional integration. Over the years, BADEA has built a broad African presence, operating in 44 Sub-Saharan countries and approving more than 2,000 transactions worth over USD 15 billion since its establishment in 1974 by 18 Arab League member states.
Uganda now joins a growing list of countries where BADEA has committed significant resources to unlock economic potential. In Kenya, the bank extended a USD 20 million credit line to a commercial bank to finance private sector projects. In Cameroon, Ivory Coast, and Nigeria, it has channelled funds to support SMEs, agricultural manufacturing, and energy projects, while also enhancing resilience to Covid-19. Guinea has benefitted from financing for bauxite extraction and export, a move that boosted national income and job creation. In South Sudan, BADEA funded imports for a power station, while in Côte d’Ivoire and West Africa it has supported cashew exporters and cocoa producers to expand their reach in global markets.
The bank’s growing influence has also been felt at the regional level, where it has financed petroleum supplies, strengthened trade flows, and provided capacity-building support, including feasibility studies, training programmes, and technical expertise exchanges between Arab and African countries.
In 2024, BADEA signalled its ambition to mobilise larger pools of development capital by launching its inaugural EUR 500 million social bond. Backed by strong credit ratings – AA/A-1+ from S&P Global and Aa2 from Moody’s — the bond opened a new channel for attracting international investors to Africa’s growth story.
With authorised capital of USD 20 billion and a mandate that now firmly embraces private sector development, BADEA is positioning itself as a key player in Africa’s economic transformation. The Uganda deal not only strengthens the country’s growth prospects but also underscores BADEA’s strategy of “spreading its wings” investing in sectors and markets that can deliver lasting impact, create jobs, and enhance Africa’s global competitiveness.
