The Development Bank of Rwanda (BRD), on Friday, September 29, opened the public offer of its inaugural Sustainability-Linked Bond (SLB) worth Rwf 30 billion.

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The SLB is partially credit-enhanced through a World Bank lending operation to the Government of Rwanda through the Access to Finance for Economic Recovery and Resilience Project (AFIRR).

It has a seven-year maturity and is targeting $24.8 million (Rwf 30 billion). It is the initial issuance of a larger $124 million (Rwf 150 billion) Medium Term Note Programme.

According to a statement from the bank, the bond’s offer will close on October 13. Once it closes, it will be listed and traded on the Rwanda Stock Exchange.

The SLB comes to raise funds to support the bank’s ambition to mainstream environmental, social, and governance for partner financial institutions, increasing women-led business loans, and financing affordable housing.

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"The Government of Rwanda welcomes the support of the World Bank through this innovative financing instrument. It is the first time IDA financing is being used to leverage private capital and we are glad the World Bank chose Rwanda to be the proof of concept for this initiative,” said Uzziel Ndagijimana the Minister of Finance and Economic Planning.

"The Government looks forward to continuing and expanding the existing relationship with the World Bank to crowd in private capital,” he added.

Following its approval from the Capital Market Authority, the SLB issuance is both the first by a national development bank globally and in East Africa.

"By issuing its first bond ever, BRD is effectively diversifying its source of development finance by tapping into the local capital market for the first time. This will ensure that BRD is no longer solely reliant on international credit lines thereby further sophisticating its resource mobilization efforts, said Kampeta Sayinzonga, CEO of BRD.

The SLB aims at linking funding and sustainability strategies, helping to diversify funding sources while nurturing BRD’s commitments to achieving key performance indicators aligned with Rwanda’s sustainable economic development objectives captured in Rwanda’s Vision 2050.

The KPIs focus on improving ESG systems and practices in partner financial institutions, financing to women-led businesses, and affordable housing. The issuance contributes to Rwanda’s capital market development agenda and places the country as a leader in sustainable finance regionally.

"Given the climate funding gaps globally, using the scarce public resources as efficiently as possible is paramount,” said Keith Hansen, World Bank Country Director for Kenya, Rwanda, Somalia and Uganda. "I am confident that this issuance will act as a template for many other countries in the coming years and I commend the Government of Rwanda and BRD for their innovation and openness to bring this transaction to fruition.”

A key feature of the SLB issuance is the credit enhancement, which the government of Rwanda funded via a World Bank loan. Since the bond is BRD’s first issuance, the credit-enhanced structure has helped to mobilize private sector capital, enabling BRD to diversify its funding base.

It is expected that with time, BRD will be able to issue without a credit enhancement, given its strong balance sheet and credit.