ECOWAS Development Bank Boosts Infrastructure Spending

The ECOWAS Bank for Investment and Development (EBID) has approved five new financing packages totaling more than $510 million, targeting infrastructure, healthcare, energy, and private-sector growth across West Africa. In Guinea, EBID committed roughly $155 million to the construction and paving of two road corridors. The projects are geared toward facilitating trade and reducing transport costs. The bank will also provide about $75 million for the construction of a 200-bed regional hospital in Siguiri, as well as funding for the Tinkisso II hydropower project, expected to supply electricity to over 350,000 people. In Ghana, a $150 million credit facility will support eight road and bridge projects valued at approximately $1.2 billion. Meanwhile, the bank will provide Sierra Leone’s WAICA Reinsurance Corporation with a $50 million loan facility aimed at strengthening its capital base and, by extension, its ability to finance development projects in the country.