GABORONE – The Botswana Development Corporation has signed €100 million, about P1.5 billion, in financing agreements with the Arab Bank for Economic Development in Africa to expand private-sector growth and increase citizen participation in the economy.
The agreements were signed in Gaborone by BDC Managing Director Oteng Keabetswe and BADEA Board Chairman H.E. Dr. Fahad Aldossari.
The package is subject to final term sheets and finance documents. It comprises two facilities:
- €40 million, approx P604 million, Private Sector Facility* to finance commercially viable businesses and profit-oriented state-owned enterprises. The funding will target investments that expand production capacity, strengthen local value chains, and support Botswana’s economic diversification agenda.
- €60 million, approx P906 million, revolving Trade Finance Facility to provide short-term financing to eligible BDC clients. It will also support the procurement of medicines, consumables, equipment, and spare parts for hospitals.
Keabetswe said the partnership will increase BDC’s capacity to fund enterprises that deliver wider economic benefits.
“Botswana’s transformation requires capital suited to business needs, available for long enough to build productive capacity, and structured in a way that allows credible enterprises to act when opportunities arise. The real measure of today’s signing will come after the photographs: capital deployed responsibly, businesses expanded, contracts delivered, essential goods supplied and employment sustained,” he said.
Dr. Aldossari said the deal reflects BADEA’s confidence in Botswana’s economic potential.
“BADEA’s EUR 100 million partnership with BDC reflects its confidence in Botswana, its commitment to private-sector development and trade, and its ambition for a longer-term relationship,” he said.
The financing comes as government continues efforts to mobilise investment capital, support enterprise expansion, and drive greater private-sector participation in economic development.