The Fonds Africain de Garantie et de Coopération Economique (FAGACE) yesterday granted a guarantee of over six billion CFA francs to Togo Télécoms to finance its expansion and modernization projects.
Togo’s incumbent telephone operator now has a free hand to smoothly raise funds on the regional financial market. Togo-Télécoms has been granted a guarantee of 6,543,700,000 CFA francs by Fagace (Fonds africain de garantie et de coopération économique), including 5 billion CFA francs in capital, to facilitate this operation, which will enable it to carry out projects to extend and modernize its network.
This amount represents 25% of the bond issue that the telephone company is preparing to launch on the regional stock exchange through Société Générale d’Intermédiation (SGI)-Togo. Sofiath Ibikounlé, representative of Fagace’s Managing Director at the agreement signing ceremony, said: “The importance and relevance of the objectives being pursued justify the commitment of our institution as guarantor. She noted that the completion of this major project, which will equip Togo-Télécoms with efficient modern technologies, will help to boost its activities and revitalize the Togolese economy.
For Pétchétibadi Bikassam, Managing Director of Togo-Télécoms, his company is at an important stage in its development, and will be even more so with the support of Fagace. Mr. Bikassam also underlined the growing awareness among incumbent telecoms operators in the West African region of the need to work together to meet the challenges of modernization and competitiveness they face. It’s only together that we can bridge the digital divide that separates Africa from other continents”, he maintains. The guarantee granted to Togo-Télécoms brings Fagace’s interventions in Togo to over 26 billion CFA francs, including 11 billion for the telecommunications sector. Fagace’s total intervention in the strategic telecommunications sector to date amounts to 60 billion CFA francs, spread over eleven member states,” confided Madame Ibikounlé.
Since its creation in February 1977 in Kigali, Fagace has already made more than 250 interventions in the form of guarantees, interest-rate subsidies, credit extension and equity participation, for a total amount of 253 billion CFA francs, with a loss ratio of 8.1%. Thanks to these interventions, 900 billion F Cfa have been mobilized for the benefit of member states, enabling the completion of investment projects and the creation of numerous jobs.
Member countries: Togo
