Niger has secured more than 60.6 <a href="https://absafricatv9491.live-website.com/boeing-record-715-billion-backlog-despite-second/” title=”Boeing record $715 billion backlog despite second”>billion CFA francs (about $105 million) in fresh financing from a regional development bank, highlighting how members of the Alliance of Sahel States (AES) continue to access key regional institutions despite their split from the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS).
- Niger has secured over $105 million in new financing from the West African Development Bank (BOAD) to support irrigation and electricity projects.
- The funds include 30 billion CFA francs for irrigation development and 30.6 billion for expanding power generation through a 23-megawatt project.
- Despite leaving ECOWAS to join the Alliance of Sahel States (AES), Niger remains a member of the West African Economic and Monetary Union (WAEMU)
- The investments aim to boost agricultural productivity, reduce reliance on unpredictable rainfall, and improve electricity access for economic growth.
The financing package, approved by the West African Development Bank (BOAD), comprises 30 billion CFA francs for the National Office for Hydro-Agricultural Development (ONAHA) and 30.6 billion CFA francs for the state-owned electricity utility, NIGELEC, to boost irrigation infrastructure and expand power generation.
The agreements were signed in Niamey on Tuesday in the presence of Prime Minister Ali Mahaman Zeine following a working session between senior Nigerien officials and a BOAD delegation led by the bank’s president, Serge Ekue.
The funding highlights an often-overlooked distinction in West Africa’s regional architecture. Although Niger left ECOWAS alongside Mali and Burkina Faso to form the AES, it remains a member of the West African Economic and Monetary Union (WAEMU) – the eight-country monetary bloc whose development bank, BOAD, continues to finance projects across its member states.
The latest investment will support Niger’s Refoundation Programme by expanding irrigation, increasing electricity generation through a new 23-megawatt power project, and strengthening the country’s broader agricultural and industrial development agenda.
According to Finance Minister Laouali Abdou Rafa, the 30 billion CFA franc allocation to ONAHA will fund the acquisition of equipment and machinery needed to accelerate the country’s large-scale irrigation programme.
The funds include 30 billion CFA francs for irrigation development and 30.6 billion for expanding power generation through a 23-megawatt project.Geography Times
The initiative is expected to increase irrigated farmland, improve agricultural productivity and reduce Niger’s dependence on increasingly unpredictable rainfall, a key challenge in one of the world’s most climate-vulnerable countries.
The remaining 30.6 billion CFA francs will finance a 23-megawatt electricity project through NIGELEC, boosting domestic power generation at a time when access to reliable electricity remains one of the country’s biggest constraints on economic growth.
Officials say the combined investments will also support agro-processing, strengthen energy security and encourage industrial development by providing farmers and businesses with more reliable infrastructure.
The latest financing highlights BOAD’s continued commitment to funding development projects in Niger despite the country’s political realignment following the 2023 military takeover.
Although Niger has withdrawn from the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) alongside Mali and Burkina Faso to form the Alliance of Sahel States (AES), it remains a member of the West African Economic and Monetary Union (WAEMU), allowing it to continue accessing financing from the regional development lender.
For Niger, where agriculture employs the majority of the workforce while electricity shortages continue to constrain economic activity, the twin investments are expected to address two of the country’s most persistent development challenges and lay the groundwork for broader economic transformation.
