ShafDB targets West Africa housing with $100 million bond

Shelter Afrique Development Bank (ShafDB) has launched a CFA60 billion ($100 million) sustainable bond, to mobilize local-currency financing for affordable and sustainable housing across the West African Economic and Monetary Union.

The issuance gives the pan-African development lender another route into regional capital markets as housing demand accelerates.

The bond comprises a five-year tranche carrying a 6.10% interest rate and a seven-year tranche at 6.30%. The subscription period runs from Oct. 7 through Oct. 30, 2026. ShafDB said the transaction will diversify its funding base while expanding access to African capital markets and local sources of long-term financing.

Local savings meet housing

“Our ambition is not simply to raise capital, but to build a more diversified and resilient financing platform for housing and urban development across Africa,” said Nabil Mahfoudh, ShafDB’s director of treasury. He said deeper West African capital-market participation would connect local savings with pressing development needs.

Mahfoudh said financing projects in local currencies would allow developers to better match their borrowing with revenues generated in those currencies. That structure could reduce foreign-exchange exposure, an important consideration for medium- and long-term real estate investments where currency swings can increase financing costs and weaken project economics.

A deep regional housing gap

The bond is being issued against a significant housing shortfall across the WAEMU region. Estimates cited by the World Bank Group put the deficit at about 3.5 million housing units, while roughly 250,000 additional homes are needed annually to keep pace with population growth and rapid urbanization across member countries.

The transaction forms part of the New African Financial Architecture for Development, or NAFAD, outlined in the Abidjan Consensus. The initiative seeks to mobilize more African savings, deepen domestic capital markets and complement international funding sources, giving development institutions greater capacity to finance projects in local currencies.

Regulatory approval secured

The issuance has received approval from the Autorité des Marchés Financiers de l’UMOA, clearing the regulatory hurdle for the bond to enter the regional capital market. ShafDB plans to direct proceeds toward affordable, sustainable and energy-efficient housing projects across the WAEMU bloc.

The bank said the sustainable bond supports its broader transformation into a pan-African multilateral development bank serving 44 shareholder countries.

Its strategy includes diversifying funding sources, increasing access to African capital markets, attracting international partners and strengthening its capital base to support housing and urban infrastructure.

ShafDB expands its reach

ShafDB is a pan-African multilateral development bank focused on financing housing, urban development and related infrastructure.

Established in 1981-82, the institution is headquartered in Nairobi, Kenya, with regional offices including Abuja and Abidjan, and is owned by 44 African governments alongside the African Development Bank and Africa Re.

The bank finances housing and related infrastructure across the development value chain through four business lines: Financial Institutions Group, Project Finance Group, Sovereign and Public-Private Partnerships Group, and Fund Management Group.

The latest bond gives ShafDB another instrument to channel regional savings toward housing investment where financing gaps remain substantial.