On Thursday, July 25, 2024 in Brazzaville, the Minister of Economy and Finance, Mr. Jean-Baptiste ONDAYE, chaired the official launch ceremony of the activities of the African Solidarity Fund (FSA) in the Republic of Congo, by its Director General, Mr. Abdourahmane DIALLO. This took place in the presence of several members of the Government, heads of financial institutions (Banks, Insurance companies and socio-professional and employer organizations). On this occasion, Minister Jean-Baptiste ONDAYE made a plea in favor of financing the Congolese economy. And, during the meeting, 7 framework agreements for economic cooperation were signed.

In his plea, the Congolese Minister of Economy and Finance, addressing the Director General of the FSA, insisted on the need to pool efforts and encourage a win-win partnership between the African Solidarity Fund and the Banks, microfinance institutions and insurance companies operating in Congo, with a view to getting the Congolese private sector out of underfunding.

"Concerning the Republic of Congo, which is facing several challenges relating to the problem of financing its National Development Plan (NDP) 2022-2026 and the issue of debt, I expresses the hope that your visit will be part of the continuation of the discussions that we began on the sidelines of the 3rd session of the Board of Governors of the African Solidarity Fund (ASF) held on June 21, 2024 in Abidjan, Republic of Côte d'Ivoire. I sincerely hope that your visit will allow the ASF's interventions in favor of Congo to be triggered as soon as possible. In this regard, following the examples of Gabon and Cape Verde, we hope that the ASF will provide its guarantee to the State, to help it successfully resolve the domestic public debt reprofiling operations. I invite all the entities in charge of these issues to make themselves available to discuss the modalities for implementing these operations," declared Mr. Jean-Baptiste ONDAYE.

Moving from words to action, the two parties materialized this partnership by signing 7 Framework Agreements for Economic Cooperation, for the benefit of 3 banks, 2 chambers of commerce and 2 employers' unions. These are the framework agreements between the FSA and the Banque Postale du Congo (BPC); the FSA and the Banque Congolaise de l'Habitat (BCH); the FSA and BGFIBank; the FSA and the Chamber of Commerce, Industry, Agriculture and Trades of Brazzaville; the FSA and the Chamber of Commerce, Industry, Agriculture and Trades of Pointe-Noire; the FSA and the National Union of Economic Operators of Congo (UNOC); the FSA and the Congress of Business Leaders of Congo (CCEC).

Regarding the framework cooperation agreement between the FSA and the Sino Congolese Bank for Africa (BSCA-Bank), its signature, already acquired, will be recorded shortly.

For his part, the Director General of the FSA reassured the Congolese party of his institution's commitment to providing answers to the financing questions of all partners. "Mr. Minister of Economy and Finance, your participation in this ceremony confirms your full commitment and your unwavering support for development financing and reflects all the consideration and importance that you give to our common institution. The problem of development financing is acute in Africa. And all sectors of activity are concerned. Also, the various development plans and schemes on a continental or even global scale, such as Agenda 2063, the Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA), the African Union's 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, integrate this major concern and strive to provide adequate responses," he said.

It should be noted that the launching ceremony of the FSA activities was marked not only by the screening of a presentation of the intervention mechanisms and guarantee opportunities offered by this institution, but also by a panel under the theme: "FSA, an opportunity for the Congolese economy".

The brilliance of the event was enhanced by the presence of 4 other members of the government. In this case: Mrs. Ingrid Olga Gislaine EBOUKA-BABACKAS, Minister of Planning, Statistics and Regional Integration; Mr. Jean-Marc Thystère TCHICAYA (Special Economic Zones - SEZ); Antoine Nicéphore Thomas FYLLA SAINT-EUDES (Industrial Development and Promotion of the Private Sector); Juste Désiré MONDELE (Delegate for Decentralization and Local Development).

The Communication Unit of the Ministry of Economy and Finance

Photo credit: B2B Communication