AfDB awards Sucden 100 mln euro loan for Ivory Coast
The African Development Bank (AfDB) has approved a 100 million euro ($109 million) loan to Sucden’s Ivory Coast branch for cocoa investment, a company official said on Wednesday.
Sucden, a French based commodity firm, has a local branch in top cocoa grower Ivory Coast and is one of the top five buyers in the country. The branch purchases around 100,000 tonnes annually and aims to increase this to 150,000 tonnes.
“We received from the African Development Bank a loan of 100 million euros renewable in two years time to develop our export activities in Ivory Coast,” said Bertrand Fay De Lestrac, director of the cocoa department of Sucden in Paris.
An AfDB statement said the loan would contribute to a programme that offers pre-financing to small-scale farmers.
“This financing will permit higher exports from Ivory Coast and help reinforce the capacities of suppliers and local cooperatives,” it said. Source: Share Net