The French Development Agency (AFD) has signed deal worth US$16.61mn with the government of Burkina Faso to boost the energy and education sectors
The two financing agreements were signed between the French Ambassador in Ouagadougou, Luc Hallade, and Lassané Kaboré, Burkina Faso’s minister of economy, finance and development.
As reported in Afrik21, the first agreement covers US$6.55mn of financing in the form of a grant from the European Union (EU) for which AFD is the delegated authority. The funds are earmarked to finance Burkina Faso’s solar plan, the “Yeleen Project.” The project is set to equip the country with four solar power plants. As per the plans, the plants connected to the grid of the National Electricity Company of Burkina Faso (SONABEL) will be built near Ouagadougou (42 MWp), in Dori (6 MWp), Diapaga (two MWp) and Gaoua (one MWp).
The Yeleen project is expected to extend the distribution network to improve the populations’ access to electricity. The government is also planning to invest in decentralised electricity production from solar energy in the form of mini-grids and individual solutions, including solar home systems.
AFD has US$90.93mn in 2020 for the Yeleen project and is supporting Burkina Faso’s solar plan within the framework of the Sahel Alliance. Yeleen is also supported by the African Development Bank (AfDB), the source has further reported.
