Barclays Africa Group Limited and China Development Bank (CDB) have signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) aimed at strengthening cooperation and exploring opportunities to fund development projects in Africa.

Barclays says it will leverage the MoU to extract synergies from the CDB’s focus on inclusive finance to provide capital to Small and Medium Enterprises and low income communities.

In addition, Barclays Africa and CDB will explore reciprocal training and development opportunities for their respective investment teams.

Unlocking opportunities

“This MoU represents a long-term commitment by senior leadership at Barclays Africa to strengthen our relationship with the world’s largest development finance institution, which has assets of over $2 trillion. This partnership will unlock opportunities that are aligned to our Shared Growth approach and could facilitate positive socio-economic impact,” says Barclays Africa’s Corporate and Investment Banking (CIB) Co-Chief Executive, Temi Ofong.

“As a Pan-African bank, Shared Growth gives our business an exciting opportunity to make a difference in our communities and to be part of shaping the collective futures of this great continent,” says Ofong.

The CDB was established in 1994 as a policy bank but now operates as a Development Finance Institution (DFI) for the Chinese Government. By 2017, CDB supported more than 500 projects in 43 African countries valued at $50 billion.

In 2016, China-Africa trade flow reached $150 billion, making China, Africa’s largest trade partner for seven consecutive years.