AFC and Arise IIP break ground on new special economic zone in Sierra Leone
Freetown, April 26, 2023 – Africa Finance Corporation, Africa’s leading infrastructure solutions provider, and its investee company ARISE Integrated Industrial Platforms today announce the development of a Special Economic Zone (SEZ) with the government of Sierra Leone to maximise value capture and import substitution across core sectors.
Photo credit: State House of Sierra Leone
Following parliamentary ratification of its agreement with the Sierra Leone government, ARISE IIP has been granted a concession to develop a port and rail system in the Koya Industrial Zone (SiZ-Koya) and will build the energy systems and infrastructure to enable industrial activity. The industrial zone is aimed at boosting economic growth and skilled jobs and raising export revenue by attracting investors through streamlined permits and approvals required to do businesses in Sierra Leone.
The initial focus is on import substitution by manufacturing tiles and processing iron-ore used in the construction industry, as well as creating pharmaceutical products. In agriculture, the initiative will promote value capture by producing finished and packaged goods from forestry, cotton, soya and cashew.
Attending the ground-breaking ceremony in the presence of Sierra Leone President Julius Maada Bio, AFC’s President and CEO, Samaila Zubairu said: “This collaboration between our partners at Arise IIP and the Sierra Leonian government will make a massive contribution to economic growth and development by maximizing value capture and value retention across several core sectors. The SIZ-Koya will be a bedrock of opportunities for local businesses, and an engine that draws in foreign investment, and promotes technology transfer and skills development.”
Launched in 2010, ARISE IIP is building from a consistent track record of creating highly transformative special economic zones. The Nkok Special Economic Zone in Gabon – Africa’s first certified carbon neutral industrial zone– transformed the country into the world’s largest exporter of wood veneers, creating over 30,000 jobs and increasing foreign-currency earnings.
In Togo, the Plateforme Industrielle d'Adétikopé (PIA) is set to generate US$750 million in additional GDP and US$1 billion in additional exports. The Glo-Djigbé Industrial Zone (GDIZ) in Benin is expected to generate US$2 billion in additional GDP, US$3 billion in exports, and positively impact 600,000 farmers.
Co-owned by AFC and the Africa Transformation and Industrialization Fund (ATIF), ARISE IIP has expanded its reach to nine countries, including Chad, Cote d’Ivoire, Democratic Republic of Congo, Nigeria, Republic of the Congo, and Rwanda. The SEZs are focused on value capture and retention in core commodities including cashew, cassava, maize, plantains, rubber and timber.
About AFC
AFC was established in 2007 to be the catalyst for private sector-led infrastructure investment across Africa. AFC’s approach combines specialist industry expertise with a focus on financial and technical advisory, project structuring, project development, and risk capital to address Africa’s infrastructure development needs and drive sustainable economic growth.
Sixteen years on, AFC has developed a track record as the partner of choice in Africa for investing and delivering on instrumental, high-quality infrastructure assets that provide essential services in the core infrastructure sectors of power, natural resources, heavy industry, transport, and telecommunications. AFC has invested US$11.5 billion in 36 countries across Africa since inception.
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Yewande Thorpe
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Africa Finance Corporation
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Gavin Serkin
New Markets Media & Intelligence
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