Burundi: the African Development Bank and the government sign two agreements for € 29.7 million in grants for the energy sector, from the resources mobilized from the European Union.

AfDB NEWS & EVENTS

20-Dec-2019

From right to left: Daniel Ndoye, country manager of the African Development Bank in Burundi, Domitien Ndihokubwayo, Minister of Finance, Budget and Economic Development Cooperation of Burundi, and Claude Bochu, head of the delegation of the European Union in Burundi.

Bujumbura (Burundi), December 20, 2019 - The African Development Bank and the Burundian government signed this Friday in Bujumbura, the economic capital of Burundi, two grant agreements on the resources mobilized from the European Union for the sector of the country's energy.

The first donation, amounting to 14.7 million euros, is intended to finance the construction of the Rubirizi substation as part of the project to interconnect the electrical networks of the countries of the equatorial lakes of the Nile (NELSAP). The second, of 15 million euros, will help finance the Burundian part of the same electrical interconnection project.

The agreements were initialed by the Burundian Minister of Finance, Budget and Economic Development Cooperation, Domitien Ndihokubwayo, and the country manager of the African Development Bank in Burundi, Daniel Ndoye, in the presence of Claude Bochu, head of the Delegation of the European Union (EU) to Burundi.

The African Development Bank acts as administrator of resources under the delegation agreement for indirect management. These two projects already benefit from budgetary resources from the Burundian government as well as ongoing funding from the African Development Bank, namely a donation from the African Development Fund of € 15.70 million and grants from the African Development Fund and from the Technical Assistance Fund of 6.79 million euros.

"These two projects are particularly important for Burundi insofar as they aim to strengthen Burundi's electricity production and transmission capacities, to further develop the regional electric power market and thus help stimulate growth economic and improve the well-being of people in Burundi, "said Domitien Ndihokubwayo, welcoming the support of the African Development Bank and the European Union.

Daniel Ndoye was delighted with the “good collaboration which prevailed, to conclude these agreements, between Burundi, the Bank, the European Union and the economic communities of East and Central Africa (…) The Bank is available to continue to support, in financial and technical terms, the development of the energy sector in Burundi ”, in accordance with the Bank's strategic priorities,“ High 5 ”, and its Country Strategy Document (CSP 2019- 2023) in Burundi. 

Claude Bochu praised "the realization of these two projects funded in partnership with the African Development Bank, which has become a major player for energy and infrastructure projects in Africa". The head of the European Union delegation in Burundi recalled the energy projects on which the Bank and the EU are already collaborating, and the discussions under way for the conclusion of a partnership for the renovation of the port of Bujumbura.

Wale SHONIBARE, Acting Director and Vice-President of the Electricity, Energy, Climate and Green Growth Complex (PEVP) welcomed the signing of these two grant agreements and indicated that the two projects are helping to set up the regional electricity market. electricity for which the Bank is actively working.