Supporting SMEs and their growth

BIO is pleased to announce the first closing of the multi-sector private equity fund Maghreb Private Equity Fund III LLC (‘MPEF III’), with a size exceeding Euro 96 million of capital commitments alongside prestigious DFIs and institutional investors. MPEF III aims at financing Small and Medium Enterprises in Maghreb showing a strong growth potential and thus a direct impact on the local economy. MPEF III has been set up in the wake of the MPEF II fund in which BIO has already participated. Moreover, both Morocco and Algeria are partner countries of the Belgian Development Cooperation.

BIO participates in a loan facility of USD 91.25 million with the Emerging Africa Infrastructure Fund, the Netherlands Development Finance Company (FMO) and the African Development Bank to support the KivuWatt project, which aims at removing and processing otherwise hazardous methane gas trapped in the waters of Lake Kivu for use as fuel to generate critically needed electricity.

BIO and other Global Institutions signed a loan agreement with an East-African railway company, to rehabilitate and upgrade its infrastructure in Kenya and Uganda. The project aims to transform the railway concession into a reliable and operating service for the benefit of the local population, thus boosting economic and social development in the region.