The European Investment Bank (EIB) announced that it has partnered with the Rwanda Development Bank (BRD) to support businesses affected by the Covid-19 pandemic in the country. Under this agreement, the beneficiaries will receive €30 million ($33 billion) from both partners.
“The covid-19 pandemic has hit Rwandan companies hard and new investment is essential to overcome health, business, and trade challenges. The European Investment Bank’s partnership with the Development Bank of Rwanda will unlock essential new investment,” said Uzziel Ndagijimana, Minister of Finance and Economic Planning.
The new resources will be managed by BRD and provided in particular to women- and youth-owned businesses. They will be available in local currency, dollars, or euros with maturities of up to 10 years.
Rwanda has already benefited, under the "East Africa covid-19 Response Facility", of €175 million from the EIB, of which €95 million are managed by the Bank of Kigali and KCB Bank Rwanda.
According to the International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI), the lockdown period increased the poverty rate by 10.9 percentage points and 1.3 million people in rural areas fell into temporary poverty. Also, the restrictive measures have caused economic activity in the industrial and service sectors to fall by 57% and 48% respectively.
Jean-Marc Gogbeu (intern)
• Inflation within the West African Economic and Monetary Union (UEMOA) fell to a two-year low of 0....
• Interbank volumes rose 18.7% in May, while rates declined across the market• The BCEAO cut its mai...
• The U.S. imposed a 20% tariff on cashew exports from Vietnam and a 40% tax on suspected transshipm...
Cauri Money launches Gajo Money, an e-wallet for the Cameroonian diaspora, targeting €120 mil...
• Qatar Airways and Kenya Airways establish strategic agreement, introducing a third daily flight be...
MTN has announced the launch of the MTN Cloud Accelerator, a 12-week hybrid program designed to help African startups scale faster by leveraging MTN’s...
• CMOC increased cobalt production by 13% to 61,073 tonnes in the first half of 2025.• The DRC extended its cobalt export ban, forcing CMOC to stockpile...
Kenya plans to import 1.05 million tonnes of palm oil in 2025/2026, near its highest ever level. Malaysia supplies 90% of Kenya’s palm oil, sharply...
Power Africa closed after 12 years, leaving a gap in Africa’s electrification push. Mission 300 aims to connect 300 million Africans to electricity...
The Emerald Sea is a vast turquoise lagoon located in the northern part of Madagascar, just a few kilometers from the town of Antsiranana (formerly Diego...
Malawi’s Mount Mulanje and Cameroon’s Diy-Gid-Biy added to UNESCO World Heritage List Africa still holds 25% of endangered sites, despite recent...