Africa Finance Corporation (AFC), a multilateral firm which financed various infrastructure projects in Africa, plans to issue its first Sukuk bond next month, Reuters reported on January 11, citing sources with knowledge of the case. “If AFC makes a final decision to go ahead with the proposed debt sale over coming days, the sukuk will be issued in two or three weeks through a private sale,” one of the sources said

“At least one of the banks arranging the transaction is based in the United Arab Emirates,” the source added.

The U.S. dollar debut sukuk will be structured with a murabaha format, a popular cost-plus structure in Islamic finance similar to securization.

AFC was established in 2007 with an initial capital of $1.1 billion. Its main aim was to catalyze funds in Africa’s infrastructure sector. The firm’s major stakeholders include the Central Bank of Nigeria, and African commercial banks such as Ecobank, United Bank of Africa and First Bank of Nigeria. In 2015, the company secured a 15-year $50 million financing facility from the Islamic Development Bank (IDB). In the same year, it has issued a first Eurobond of $750 million. In 2016, it had 14 member states and issued another bond worth 100 hundred million Swiss francs.