01-07-2025
African Development Bank to give South Africa $475m loan
The African Development Bank (ADB) will give South Africa a $474.6m (R8.34bn) loan to upgrade its transport and energy infrastructure, the bank said on Tuesday, the second big infrastructure loan the country has been promised in weeks.
The money adds to the $1.5bn (R26.37bn) loan South Africa agreed with the World Bank last month for a similar purpose.
For more than a decade South Africa has struggled to grow because of power blackouts, crumbling rail networks and chronically congested ports that have held back major industries such as mining and car-making.
The ADB said its financing aimed to promote energy efficiency and rail reforms, among other things.
Its support was part of an international financing package for South Africa that also includes the World Bank loan, €500m (R10.38bn) from German development bank KfW, up to $200m (R3.51bn) from the Japan International Co-operation Agency and $150m (R2.63bn) from the Opec Fund for International Development.
