AfDB, JICA sign $583.4m loan for African Development Fund

The African Development Bank Group and the Japan International Cooperation Agency have signed a JPY 86.6 billion ($583.4 million) concessional loan to support the African Development Fund's seventeenth replenishment, ADF-17.

The agreement was signed in Tokyo on November 13 by Bank Group President Dr Sidi Ould Tah and JICA President Dr Akihiko Tanaka. The AfDB said in a statement published on its website on Saturday that the financing will expand access to affordable development funding for Africa's lowest-income countries. It will support infrastructure, energy access, food security and regional integration.

Largest JICA support for ADF

The loan is JICA's largest-ever official development assistance financing support to the African Development Fund. It also fulfils a commitment made by Japan's Ministry of Finance during the ADF-17 replenishment pledging session in December 2025.

Tanaka said the financing shows the strength of the partnership between JICA and the AfDB Group and Japan's confidence in the Fund. 'This financing demonstrates the strength of the partnership between JICA and the African Development Bank Group, and our shared commitment to Africa's development,' he said. He added that it would help African countries address interconnected challenges while advancing resilient, inclusive and sustainable development.

Record $11bn replenishment

Tah said ADF-17 had mobilised a record $11 billion from 44 partners. He said the Bank's ambition went beyond replenishing resources to transforming how Africa mobilises and deploys development finance.

Japan's Deputy Vice Minister for International Affairs, Kazuki Watanabe, said the country expected ADF-17 to deliver tangible results through quality infrastructure, stronger governance, institutional capacity and sustainable debt management. The agreement builds on Japan's contributions to the Fund, including grants and compensation under the Multilateral Debt Relief Initiative, which together amount to about $600 million.

The Tokyo signing followed an earlier ceremony on November 5 at the AfDB Group's headquarters in Abidjan, Côte d'Ivoire. At that event, the Bank Group's Vice-President for Finance and Chief Financial Officer, Hassatou Diop N'Sele, and Japan's Ambassador to Côte d'Ivoire, Junji Gomakubo, signed and exchanged official diplomatic notes to formalise Japan's financing commitment. Japan joined the African Development Fund in 1973 and the African Development Bank in 1982.

New financing model and Nigeria projects

ADF-17 marks a shift towards a more investment-driven financing model. The Fund is introducing concessional donor loans alongside a new market borrowing framework. The instruments are designed to leverage existing contributions and mobilise additional capital for affordable long-term financing for eligible African countries.

The African Development Fund was established in 1972 as the concessional financing arm of the AfDB Group. It provides grants and low-interest loans to eligible African countries for economic and social development.

Japan's development partnership also covers Nigeria. JICA has committed $10.4 million to support the expansion of innovation hubs across the country. In April 2025, the National Information Technology Development Agency announced it had secured a JPY 1.6 billion ($12.1 million) grant from JICA to develop a startup hub in Abuja. In August 2026, JICA committed N20 billion to the expansion and rehabilitation of Nigeria's national electricity grid.

For Nigerian businesses, the JICA pipeline in innovation hubs and the electricity grid sits alongside the wider ADF-17 financing push, touching startups and power infrastructure.