West Africa has been pushing to accelerate its industrialization through large-scale projects. However, access to financing remains a major challenge. This is especially true now, as global financing conditions are tightening and limiting investors' willingness to take long-term risks.

During the Choiseul Africa Summit in Abidjan, Meinna Gwet, Head of Corporate Finance at Ecobank Transnational Incorporated (ETI), spoke with Ecofin Agency. She shared her perspective on how to finance industrial development.

Gwet specifically discussed structured financing mechanisms tailored to the private sector. She also addressed the role of public-private partnerships, opportunities in key sectors like agribusiness and energy, and ways to strengthen local value chains by mobilizing resources more effectively.

Meinna Gwet, Head of Corporate Finance at Ecobank Transnational Inc.

Ecofin Agency (EA): Hello, Ms. Meinna Gwet. Ecobank's Growth, Transformation, and Returns strategy focuses on customers and digital innovation. How does this strategy guide your approach to financing industrial projects in West Africa, especially when the continent faces an annual funding gap of $402 billion for structural transformation?

Meinna Gwet: Thanks for the question. Our strategy is built on three key pillars. First, Growth. We want to expand our loan portfolio and increase its profitability. This means we focus on identifying and financing as many viable projects as we can, especially in key industrial sectors like metallurgy, plastics, agribusiness, and energy. We've identified priority value chains and are creating specialized desks to better serve them. This approach allows us to be more targeted and ambitious in our work, and it strengthens our internal expertise so we can better understand each sector's unique business models and challenges. Next, Transformation. We are implementing new measures to improve our operational efficiency. We are specifically focusing on speeding up our credit application process so we can meet our clients' needs more quickly.

Ecofin Agency (EA): Your recent partnership with Google Cloud aims to accelerate financial inclusion and innovation, particularly for SMEs. How are you leveraging it to improve access to affordable, long-term financing for industrial SMEs in West Africa?

Meinna Gwet: This partnership is built on three main pillars. First, digitalization of services. We are using Google Cloud to improve our data analysis and credit scoring. This allows us to more accurately evaluate small and medium-sized enterprises and create financing solutions that better fit their needs. Next, cost reduction and automation. By modernizing our infrastructure and automating processes, we can cut costs and offer faster, more competitive services. This is especially helpful in underserved areas. Finally, we want to expand our FinTech ecosystem. The partnership makes it easier to integrate third-party applications through secure APIs. This allows our partners to offer innovative solutions that complement ours, making our services more relevant to industrial small and medium-sized enterprises.

It is also worth noting that we are actively financing projects in the technology and telecom sectors. This includes the expansion of 3G, 4G, and 5G networks, the construction of telecom towers, and the development of data centers or fiber-optic infrastructure. These are areas we are increasingly interested in.

Ecofin Agency (EA): How does your group incorporate environmental, social, and governance (ESG) factors into its financing decisions for industrial projects across Africa, especially as sustainable financing becomes more prominent on the continent?

Meinna Gwet: We prioritize sustainable financing, and our initiatives reflect that. For instance, we launched the ELLEVER program to support women-led businesses and raised a 10 billion CFA franc Gender Bond for that purpose this year. We also finance high-impact projects, such as photovoltaic solar power plants, pharmaceutical factories, and industrial decarbonization efforts.

An example is our financing of the SI2P pharmaceutical plant in Côte d'Ivoire and the project with the Sococim cement plant in Senegal. Beyond just financing, we actively work with project sponsors to help them integrate environmental, social, and governance (ESG) criteria into their business models. We advise them early in the process and have incorporated ESG risk assessments into our credit approval process. This allows us to monitor these issues throughout the entire loan period.

Ecofin Agency (EA): Given the challenges of rising borrowing costs, inflation, and political instability, what innovative financing models are you using to support industrial projects?

Meinna Gwet: We rely heavily on partnerships with development finance institutions and multilateral agencies. These collaborations allow us to structure co-financing agreements and risk-sharing mechanisms. This helps us offer loans at more accessible rates for strategic projects, especially those with a positive environmental impact. We also work with guarantee and credit insurance agencies to cover risks associated with complex or long-term projects, particularly in emerging industries. This approach helps us better manage risks and increases our willingness to take on these projects. To address currency fluctuation risks, we offer hedging instruments tailored for companies that operate in multiple currencies. Our pan-African network also allows us to use the balance sheets of different subsidiaries to support regional companies that operate across various countries.

Ecofin Agency (EA): Some countries, including Benin, Rwanda, and Senegal, are investing in industrial parks. What is your view on these policies and reforms that promote industrialization?

Meinna Gwet: We see this as positive progress, although there is still room for improvement. We are actively collaborating with governments, central banks, and other stakeholders to explore measures that can reduce the tax burden on industrial activities. We are also looking at customs strategies that favor local producers. The goal is to move away from an economic model based on exporting raw materials and importing finished goods. Instead, we want to create systems where high-value products are produced and processed locally. We also support creating specific investment vehicles that allow institutional investors, such as pension funds and insurance companies, to get involved in the industrial sector. This type of capital is more patient and would complement our banking services.

Ecofin Agency (EA): Ecobank's financial performance in 2024 has given you new room to maneuver. How are you prioritizing investments in sectors like ICT and digital services, and what results are you aiming for in West Africa?

Meinna Gwet: We are very interested in high-potential sectors like agribusiness, cement, metallurgy, steel, and pharmaceuticals. We have already issued our first loan in the pharmaceutical sector and aim to replicate that success. We are also active in mining, such as our financing of the Lafigué mine in Côte d'Ivoire.

Our goal is to double the performance of our industrial financing portfolio within five years. This will require a more aggressive commercial strategy

This was a groundbreaking project with local financing. We also support industrial infrastructure, like the Adétikopé park in Togo and the Glo-Djigbé park in Benin. In addition, we've backed palm oil and cotton processing units, as well as consumer goods companies in cosmetics, hygiene, and brewing. Our goal is to double the performance of our industrial financing portfolio within five years. This will require a more aggressive commercial strategy, better financing structures, and expanding our specialized desks beyond agriculture and mining.

Ecofin Agency (EA): How important is long-term financing to your strategy, and how do you adapt your services to meet the needs of local industries?

Meinna Gwet: Long-term financing is essential for industrial development. We support our clients' recurring needs, particularly working capital, with operating lines. The scale of these needs is increasing, so we are constantly adapting. We are also developing more sophisticated, long-term solutions to support factory construction, industrial equipment acquisition, new production units, and decarbonization projects. We have already completed several successful pilot projects. We complement these efforts with strategic support. Many local companies now have ambitions for vertical integration or regional expansion. With our network in 33 African countries, five international offices, and a bank in Paris, we are well-positioned to support them at both the regional and continental levels.

Interview by Moutiou Nourou