Implementation of the Electricity for All Programme (PEPT) is set to accelerate over the next few years in Ivory Coast:. A bond issued by a local-currency securitisation vehicle to support this Ivorian government initiative has attracted an investment of 60 billion CFA francs (more than 91 million euros) from two investors.

The International Finance Corporation (IFC), a subsidiary of the World Bank Group, and the Emerging Africa Infrastructure Fund (EAIF) of the Private Infrastructure Development Group (PIDG) are each contributing 30 billion CFA francs, or more than 45.7 million euros. This is the first social bond to be issued for access to electricity within the West African Economic and Monetary Union (WAEMU). This debt instrument, which is currently very little valued in Africa, is used to finance or refinance social projects.

Access to electricity for 800,000 households

This first transaction was arranged by Abidjan-based investment bank Africa Link Capital. “Distribution is managed by local brokers BoA Capital Securities and Nsia Finance. The instrument has been certified as a social bond, after receiving a second opinion from Moody’s,” says EAIF. The proceeds of this social bond will be used to connect 800,000 disadvantaged households to Côte d’Ivoire’s national electricity grid over the next four years through the PEPT programme.

“The implementation of the PEPT programme has proved decisive in improving access to electricity for disadvantaged people in rural and urban areas of Ivory Coast: explains Zahalo Silué, chairman of the PEPT fund management committee. Under this initiative launched by the Ivorian government in October 2014, each household pays 1,000 francs (less than €2) for connection to the electricity grid, instead of 150,000 francs, more than €228.

The PEPT fund finances the remaining amount of the connection cost, around 149,000 francs (around $227), by offering the customer financing that can be repaid over a period of between 2 and 10 years. This strategy has enabled Ivory Coast: to increase the rate of access to electricity for its population to over 71% by 2021, according to the World Bank. To date, the PEPT programme has enabled 1.6 million households to be connected to the electricity networks. According to the IFC, the proceeds of the recent social bond will help to increase the rate of access to electricity by at least 13% over the next four years.

Jean Marie Takouleu