SANAD partners with BANK OF AFRICA to strengthen SMEs in Morocco through EUR 25 million loan

Luxembourg and Casablanca, January 20, 2023 – Representatives from the SANAD Fund for MSME (SANAD) and BANK OF AFRICA met to mark a strategic collaboration to improve access to finance for small and medium enterprises (SMEs) in Morocco. The Fund has extended a financing line of EUR 25 million dedicated to financing SMEs, a key segment and critical contributor to the emergence of the Moroccan economy and job creation on a national scale. This senior loan will be bolstered by technical assistance provided by SANAD's Technical Assistance Facility, which will help the Bank deploy its strategy in favour of SMEs. 

BANK OF AFRICA, third largest bank in Morocco, has a solid presence in the Moroccan market, with an extensive client portfolio and a strong focus on SMEs, making the Bank a key partner for SANAD.

This loan and the additional capacity-building support provided by the SANAD Fund are the latest steps in an ongoing cooperation between the two institutions in favor of SMEs and financial inclusion. In 2020, the SANAD Fund for MSME partnered with BANK OF AFRICA, supporting its activities in Sub-Saharan Africa through a EUR 25 million senior loan. Through its Technical Assistance Facility, the Fund also supported the group with implementing its sustainability strategy across the Group subsidiaries and reinforcing its internal staff capacities on environmental and social risks in line with best industry practices. 

Through this funding, SANAD is expanding its partnership with the Bank in the Moroccan market, a key area of focus for the Fund. The Fund's presence in Morocco, with more than $90 million invested to date, is strengthened with this loan. SANAD is supporting the Bank in its major strategic development areas, namely SME development and social impact. This financing is also expected to advance SANAD’s overall impact mission of fostering economic development and promoting business growth - contributing towards achieving SDG 8 (Decent Work and Economic Growth), and SDG 9 (Industry, Innovation, and Infrastructure).

SANAD Board Chairperson Dr. Daniela Beckmann said, “We are happy to be extending our partnership with BANK OF AFRICA to pursue SANAD’s mission of spreading financial inclusion in the Middle East and North Africa. Small and medium business owners need uninterrupted access to financial resources to grow, support jobs, and stimulate the local economy. BANK OF AFRICA has strong experience in reaching out to our target group of entrepreneurs, and we are looking forward to generating on-the-ground impact together.”

Mr. Brahim BENJELLOUN, Director and General Manager of BANK OF AFRICA, said: "The support and financing of SMEs is an integral part of BANK OF AFRICA's strategy, under the leadership of its President Mr. Othman BENJELLOUN. It is therefore with great pleasure and interest that we enter into this partnership with the SANAD Fund, a financial inclusion advocate. 

Through this partnership, BANK OF AFRICA will further pursue its SME support objectives, in terms of proximity, attentiveness, assistance in terms of structuring, training and advice to benefit various economic sectors in all of the Kingdom's regions".  

About SANAD 
The SANAD Fund for MSME finances micro, small, and medium enterprises and low-income households in the Middle East and North Africa and selected countries in sub-Saharan Africa via qualified local lenders. SANAD thereby fosters economic development and job creation – including youth employment – agriculture, affordable housing, and innovations in finance and financial technologies. SANAD strives to meet these goals by providing debt and equity financing to its local partners. The SANAD Technical Assistance Facility multiplies the fund’s development impact and outreach through capacity-building with partner institutions, developing financial infrastructures according to the principles of responsible finance and conducting much required R&D. 

An impact investment fund advised by Finance in Motion, SANAD’s investors include the KfW Development Bank, which initiated the fund; the German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ); the European Union; Switzerland’s State Secretariat for Economic Affairs (SECO); OeEB, the Development Bank of Austria; Germany’s GLS Bank and GLS Treuhand; the Dutch development bank FMO; and Calvert Impact Capital. 

For more information on the SANAD Fund for MSME, please visit: www.sanad.lu  
For more information on Finance in Motion, please visit: www.finance-in-motion.com  

About BANK OF AFRICA
Among the leading pan-African financial groups, BANK OF AFRICA, through its various brands and subsidiaries, is a banking group with diversified activities and multi-business focus areas, namely commercial banking, investment banking, and specialized financial services such as leasing, factoring and consumer credit, in addition to participatory banking.

BANK OF AFRICA is now the most internationally oriented Moroccan banking group with a presence in 32 countries throughout Africa, Europe, Asia and North America. With nearly 14,900 employees, its 2,000 branches serve 6.6 million customers. Bolstered by its international achievements, BANK OF AFRICA is a major economic and financial institution in Africa, with a strong network and a presence in 20 African countries across the continent's five regions.

The Bank is also a major player with a strong commitment to the environment and sustainable development, notably through the BMCE Bank Foundation, which promotes education and community development in rural areas in Morocco and sub-Saharan Africa. BANK OF AFRICA also draws on its expertise in impact finance and social and environmental responsibility, relying on an economic model that is oriented towards creating and sharing value, and inspired by a vision centered on the continent's sustainable development.

For more information, please visit: https://www.ir-bankofafrica.ma/

Media contact – SANAD
Anne Johnson
Marketing & Communications
Phone: +49 (0)69 271 035 742
Email: press@sanad.lu

Media contact – BANK OF AFRICA
Yasmine Boukili
Head of Media Relations & Public Opinion
Phone: +212 (0) 522 46 24 26
Email: yboukili@bankofafrica.ma