IslamicFinance.de

Ivory Coast has signed an agreement for Islamic-finance bond as it seeks to raise money for infrastructure. The Islamic Corp. for the Development of the Private Sector (ICD) will oversee the 300 billion-CFA franc ($490 million) sukuk. The program will be implemented in two tranches, each worth 150 billion francs, between this year and 2020. The sukuk will be an “alternative financing means for developmental” projects, Ivorian Minister Delegate to Finance Niale Kaba said, without giving details on what the funds will be used for. Ivory Coast joins a growing number of sub-Saharan African nations tapping Islamic finance debt markets seeking cash for development projects.