Afreximbank and the Development Bank of Southern Africa (DBSA) have signed a framework agreement establishing a Joint Project Preparation Facility. Each institution may contribute up to $10 million, creating a potential pool of $20 million. The initiative converts early-stage infrastructure and industrial proposals into projects ready for private and development finance.
Funding targets bankable projects
The facility focuses first on high-impact, trade-enabling projects in South Africa and the wider Southern African region. It may later extend to other African markets where both institutions share a strategic interest. Afreximbank and DBSA will jointly originate, screen and prioritise candidates.
Priority sectors include power and energy, with a clear emphasis on the energy transition. Transport and logistics, information and communication technology, and strategic minerals processing are also eligible. That mix reflects the region’s central role in global critical-mineral supply chains.
The facility funds technical, financial and legal preparation work. This covers feasibility studies, risk analysis and deal structuring — the work lenders require before they assess a project. Project preparation often determines whether an infrastructure concept ever reaches a financing round at all.
Developers frequently hold viable concepts but lack the structured documentation investors need. The facility gives selected sponsors access to specialist preparation work before they approach larger pools of capital. That reduces both the time and cost required to reach investment readiness.
What does the facility mean for investors?
Projects prepared through the facility may later seek financing from Afreximbank or DBSA. They may also approach private investors, other development finance institutions and commercial lenders. Preparation support does not guarantee subsequent funding — each project faces separate appraisal, approval and risk assessment.
However, better-prepared proposals give investors clearer data on costs, demand, regulation and execution risk. That matters in capital-intensive sectors. Power networks, logistics corridors, digital infrastructure and minerals processing all require long-term funding commitments and credible delivery plans.
The partnership also bridges continental trade finance with Southern Africa’s project-development expertise. Afreximbank brings a pan-African mandate; DBSA brings deep regional knowledge. Together, they can identify projects with cross-border relevance — supporting energy security, regional trade flows and industrial value chains.
Scope and next steps
The framework begins with South Africa and neighbouring markets. Extension to other African countries remains possible where both institutions share an interest. For governments, the facility offers a structured route to strengthen their project pipelines. For sponsors, it lowers the barrier to investment readiness.
A larger pool of well-prepared projects expands access to infrastructure opportunities across the region. As one institutional analyst put it: the quality of preparation, not the volume of proposals, determines how much private capital actually flows into African infrastructure. Investors should track project approvals, sector allocations and evidence of private capital mobilisation as the facility moves from framework to active deployment.
Quick answers
Each institution may contribute up to $10 million, giving the facility a combined ceiling of $20 million to fund technical, financial and legal preparation of infrastructure projects.
The facility targets power and energy (including the energy transition), transport and logistics, information and communication technology, and strategic minerals processing across Southern Africa.
No. Preparation support improves a project’s readiness and documentation quality, but each project must still undergo separate appraisal, approval and risk assessment before any financing is committed.
