Saudi- ICD-AGF agreement boon for SMEs in Sub-Saharan Africa 

(MENAFN - Arab News) Islamic Corporation for the Development of Private Sector (ICD), the private sector arm of the Islamic Development Bank Group (IDB), and The African Guarantee Fund (AGF) signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to collaborate in the development of the SME sector in ICD's member countries in the Sub-Saharan Africa region.

ICD's CEO & GM Khaled Mohammed Al-Aboodi, and AGF CEO Felix Adahi Bikpo, inked the MoU in Jeddah.

As per the MoU, ICD and AGF will join forces to cooperate in the development of the SME sector in Africa particularly in the Sub-Saharan region through providing term financing, equity investment, lines of financing or guarantees. Both institutions shall cooperate in structuring, establishing, promoting, marketing and launching funds that will promote the development of the SME sector in the region.

As a start, ICD and AGF shall collaborate in developing a SME Fund for West Africa where both institutions are planning to deploy further capital in 2013.
ICD is a multilateral financial institution that supports economic development in its member countries by providing finance to private sector units and initiatives in accordance with the principles of Shariah.

AGF was set up to significantly increase the access of African SMEs to finance from the financial sector. AGF is currently owned by the government of Denmark through Danida, the government of Spain through Aecid and the African Development Bank.