Set up on February 10, 1977 to support African economies through the promotion of public and private investment in Africa, the Fonds Africain de Garantie et de Coopération Économique (FAGACE) is celebrating its 47th anniversary in the service of member states’ development.
To mark the occasion, a press conference was held on February 13, 2024 at Cotonou’s Golden Tulip hotel, attended by national and international media and the institution’s directors and management.
The presentations covered the Fund’s history, the significant progress made in recent years and the outlook for the future.
In his speech, the Fund’s Managing Director indicated that this celebration was a solemn occasion to pause and look back over the years.
Thanks to the 2021-2025 Strategic Plan, the last four years have been stimulating for the Fund, which has resolutely turned towards new ambitions by implementing the reforms essential to its strategic repositioning.
FAGACE now has a better operational organization in line with the best international standards. As a result, it is more responsive and efficient.
Among the reforms introduced, the Managing Director emphasized that, following the example of international financial institutions, FAGACE has strengthened its governance through the recruitment of 03 independent directors to chair the specialized committees, and the creation of the Independent Evaluation Office (IEO), made up of the 04 central banks in its areas of intervention. FAGACE has been rated since 2018, and has been awarded an AA rating for 2023. Among the major innovations, the FAGACE Institute has been created as a center of excellence responsible for training, studies, research and technical assistance to member states and promoters. On the institutional front, the Fund’s capital has been increased from 350 billion to 500 billion CFA francs by 2023, demonstrating the shareholders’ ongoing support for the institution. This new dynamic reflects FAGACE’s renewed commitment to playing a more active role in the ecosystem of financing wealth-creating and development projects in member states.
All these measures, together with the efforts made by our staff over the last four years, have contributed to the qualitative results we have achieved, including an increase of over 260% in the level of warranty claims for the 2023 financial year.
In this respect, the Fund’s short-term ambition is to devote greater attention to the development of operational activities, by intensifying cooperative relations with financial partners, broadening the areas of intervention, mobilizing resources for the benefit of partners and governments, and federating National Guarantee Funds to better meet the expectations of markets and governments.
