*The company has already done a lot of internal capacity building in collaboration with the African Development Bank before the launch.
Shelter-Afrique is developing a government loan product to complement its traditional products that address both the demand and supply side of the housing value chain, the Pan-African Development and Development Corporation has revealed. housing finance.
Kingsley Muwowo, acting CEO of Shelter-Afrique, in Nairobi said Africa’s GDP decline as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic was an alarming sign of the collapse of inclusive housing targets in many countries and thus the need for the company to respond to risk for a possible withdrawal of governments while reviving its financial flexibility.
“The Covid pandemic has ushered in an era of economic distress across Africa with an average recession of -3.6 percent in 2020, the first recession in SSA in 25 years. In response, Shelter-Afrique recently revised its corporate strategic plan to to align with its members’ priorities and position the company for better performance and increased development impact. One of the outcomes of this strategic review is the decision to develop a government product loan for our member countries,” said Mr. Muwowo.
Currently, the company offers various related products and services, including project finance, institutional loans, equity and joint ventures, trade finance and social housing, to support the provision of affordable housing and real estate.
Capacity building
- Muwowo was speaking during a three-day internal training on government loans, organized by the company and facilitated by the African Development Bank through its training arm, the African Development Institute.
Through training, Shelter-Afrique aims to expand its capacity to absorb funds from anticipated new business development, carry out product design and development, and support the various departments of the organization to ensure that the product is developed and executed effectively.
“Internally, these activities will be carried out by experts in various departments in collaboration with the African Development Institute to ensure that the product is well adapted to the market needs of our member countries,” said Mr. Muwowo.
The Divisional Director of the African Development Institute, Mr. Chidozie Emenuga, said the partnership with Shelter-Afrique was part of the African Development Bank Group’s commitment to intensify its efforts to help overcome capacity constraints in Africa.
“Capacity development is key to achieving key development goals, including the Sustainable Development Goals – which include housing for all – the Addis Ababa Agreement on Accelerating Financing for Development, the African Union’s Agenda 2063 and the National Development Goals of African countries,” he said. Emenuga said.
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