(Ecofin Agency) - The BOAD's Djoliba 2021-2025 strategic plan places a significant emphasis on the digital economy, with investments totaling CFA3.3 trillion (about €5 billion).

The total amount of financing granted by BOAD to the digital sector has risen from CFA15 billion in 2022 to CFA40 billion in 2023, and is set to grow strongly over the next few years, announced Moustapha Ben-Barka, vice-president of the institution's finance and investment division. He was speaking this week during the Cyber Africa Forum 2024 in Abidjan.

"BOAD has crafted a sectoral intervention strategy aimed at nurturing the development of a resilient, affordable, secure, and inclusive digital sector, fostering sub-regional integration and the establishment of a common digital market, a key driver of growth for UEMOA economies," Ben-Barka emphasized, underscoring the digital economy as one of Djoliba plan's top priorities.

BOAD's commitment to the digital sector is longstanding. According to data from Ecofin Agency up to December 2022, the Lomé-based bank has financed 44 ICT projects totaling CFA240.8 billion since its inception. These projects range from mobile telephony development to fiber optic network expansion. 63% of this portfolio went to private sector projects, and 37% to projects led by UEMOA member states' governments. Excluding Guinea-Bissau, an average of 6 projects per country were financed from 1973 to 2023.

However, ICT projects still represent less than 4% of BOAD's total financing. The bank aims to boost this figure, announcing plans to launch a Digital Transformation Fund (DTF). With nearly 24 billion CFA francs, the fund will initially target a pipeline of ambitious projects aimed at modernizing digital infrastructure and services across the eight union member countries.

The fund will support "non-market priority projects" in infrastructure and e-services, assisting states in ICT project preparation and financing national ICT projects. This includes support for public digital platforms (single window, land registry, etc.), digitalization of administration (procurement, civil registration, e-health, e-taxation, e-customs, etc.), deployment of fiber optics, DTT, and data centers across the union. Furthermore, BOAD collaborates with the OIF on the D-CLIC project, aimed at enhancing digital skills among youth in the Francophone space.