Rabat – IFC the private investment arm of the World Bank, on Tuesday announced it will invest nearly $200 million in four projects relating to food security, access to finance, and sustainable agriculture and construction in Morocco and other parts of Africa.
The financing will also support Morocco’s economic recovery strategy following the country’s devastating September 8 earthquake, the IFC said on the sidelines of the IMF and World Bank meetings in Marrakech.
According to a statement from the organization, the four investment projects reflect “IFC’s commitment to supporting sustainable private sector activity in Africa that contributes to job creation, the delivery of essential goods and services, and shared prosperity.”
The investment projects include €100 million to Morocco’s OCP, the world’s largest phosphate-based fertilizer producer. The fund would go to finance its ambitious solar program and help green global food systems.
Another $36 million risk-sharing facility will go to Moroccan bank Banque Centrale Populaire (BCP), and Morocco’s irrigation company CMGP, to support sustainable agriculture in Morocco, including in the region affected by the earthquake.
Meanwhile, a €10 million equity investment, in partnership with Mediterrania Capital, in Moroccan financial services provider Cashplus to foster financial inclusion in the country.
A €45 million investment will go to Moroccan cement producer CIMAF to support low-carbon cement production in Africa.
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IFC also said in the statement that it will provide “advisory services, focused on evaluating the earthquake’s impact on the local economy and designing a response to support affected businesses through the regional investment center (CRI), of the Marrakech-Safi region.”
This advisory support is part of a wider response program by the World Bank Group to mobilize finance and expertise to help Morocco rebuild and restore impacted communities in the aftermath of the earthquake, the statement adds.
Commenting on the news, IFC Managing Director Makhtar Diop said: “These transformative investments underscore our commitment to mobilize private capital and foster sustainable development in Morocco.”
As IFC and Morocco mark 60 years of partnership, he added, IFC is also “fully committed to playing a pivotal role in the recovery and reconstruction efforts as the kingdom rebuilds from last month’s earthquake.”
