China Development Bank (CDB) and Agence Fran?aise de Développement (AFD) signed an agreement with the Ministry of Economy, Planning, and Cooperation, Senegal to jointly support a sewage treatment project of Hann Bay in Dakar, with EUR 14.4 million of financing from CDB. It is not only the first co-financing cooperation between CDB and AFD in third-party markets, but also an important initiative taken by CDB to implement the cooperation consensus between the Chinese and French governments and the spirit of the 8th Ministerial Conference of the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation.

The sewage treatment project of Hann Bay in Dakar, included in the List of Key Projects in China-France Third-Party Market Cooperation (4th Round) and the outcome list of the 8th China-France High Level Economic and Financial Dialogue, will be implemented in two phases. The second phase of the project was jointly financed by CDB and AFD, mainly including construction of sewage collection network, booster station, pump station, drainage channel, and sewage treatment works of autonomous ports in Dakar. The project aims to improve the living conditions of residents along the bay coast and reduce sewage-related infectious diseases in the region, benefiting hundreds of thousands of people. At the same time, by reducing the discharge of untreated industrial and domestic wastewater into the bay, it is expected to improve the water quality and ecosystem of the bay, and promote port investment.

It is reported that CDB and AFD are both members of the International Development Finance Club (IDFC). The two sides signed a memorandum of cooperation as early as in 2018 to strengthen cooperation in such areas as joint research and green finance, as well as explore third-party market cooperation in Senegal and other African countries. Since then, CDB has actively cooperated with AFD and the government of Senegal to innovate the co-financing cooperation model, and steadily promote the trilateral cooperation despite the impact of the pandemic and other factors.

The signing is an initiative launched by CDB and ADF to provide co-finance for “small but beautiful” projects for the people’s livelihood and green and environmental protection in African countries, in accordance with the concept of responsible financing, green and sustainable ESG concept, and in compliance with the procurement rules of Senegal. In the next step, CDB will, following international practices and market-based operation principles, continue to cooperate with relevant international financial institutions in third-party markets through syndicated loans and co-financing, so as to jointly promote the high-quality development of the Belt and Road Initiative.