Loan to Government of Republic of Benin under GREEN Operations
Supporting Electrified Lantern Project for Elementary Schools in Benin

• Region: Africa
• Infrastructures
• Environment
• Untied Loans
• Guarantees

1. The Japan Bank for International Cooperation (JBIC; Governor: HAYASHI Nobumitsu) signed on June 29 a loan agreement amounting to up to EUR1 million, of which JBIC’s portion is EUR500,000, with the Government of the Republic of Benin (Benin) under the credit line set up in March 2021^*1. The loan is co-financed with MUFG Bank, Ltd. and the Joyo Bank, Ltd. JBIC will also provide a guarantee for the portion co-financed by the private financial institutions.
     
2. The loan is provided as part of JBIC’s GREEN operations^*2, and is intended to provide the funds necessary for a project to install rooftop solar panels on elementary school buildings in Benin, enabling students to power rechargeable electric lanterns with a clean renewable energy source and lend them to pupils to light households in unelectrified areas. In addition to the reduction of greenhouse gas emissions, the project is expected to promote access to primary education by providing incentives for households to send their children to school. In addition, the project will contribute toward improving the electrification rate in rural areas in Benin, which is designated as a priority task for the country with a large electrification rate disparity existing between regions.
     
3. The Government of Benin signed the Paris Agreement in 2016. In 2021, the Government amended its Nationally Determined Contribution (NDC), expressing its commitment to the measures against climate change by, for example, aiming to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 48.75 million tons of CO2 equivalent compared to the base scenario between 2021 and 2030. The loan is expected to contribute toward reducing greenhouse gas emissions through the promotion of global environmental preservation projects in Benin and help realize the sustainable development of Benin itself.
     
4. As Japan’s policy-based financial institution, JBIC will continue to provide financial support for global environmental preservation efforts by drawing on its various financial facilities and schemes for structuring projects and by performing its risk-assuming function.
     

Note

1. *1 
   See Press Release on March 25, 2021.
2. *2 
   See Announcement on July 2, 2018.