Insufficient and inadequate infrastructure stifles productivity, reinforces poverty, and limits private sector engagement.
DFC prioritizes transactions in high-quality infrastructure through support for seaports, roads, airports, and railways that connect communities to the opportunities of the global marketplace. Our investments also modernize transportation hubs and networks, allow for safe and open access to information technology networks, and secure supply chains for minerals critical to U.S. national security.
DFC’s infrastructure financing adheres to high standards for labor and the environment in quality projects that are responsive to local needs. With the private-sector-driven model DFC offers, the United States is helping to address the global gap for infrastructure financing, and at the same time raising the bar for the quality of infrastructure investment globally.
In 2022, the United States, Japan, and Australia renewed the Trilateral Infrastructure Partnership (TIP) to jointly support sustainable economic growth and development across the Indo-Pacific region. The resulting projects reflect these partners’ shared values, emphasize transparency, and respect the sovereignty and individual needs of countries in the region.
A DFC loan of up to $150 million will support the expansion and modernization of the Puerto Bolívar container port in Ecuador's El Oro province. The project will improve the security of global supply chains by making it more efficient for businesses in Ecuador to import and export goods. Upgrades including the addition of cold storage facilities, modern electrified cranes, and the dredging of approach channels will allow the port to accommodate larger ships, expanding the port's capacity.
A DFC equity investment in TechMet Limited will support the development of a critical mineral mining facility in Piaui, Brazil that will produce nickel and cobalt suitable for lithium-ion batteries. DFC’s investment will also support the development of new technology and designs in processes that will advance more efficient and environmentally sensitive mining practices.
A DFC loan is helping The Urban Resilience Fund (TURF), a blended finance investment fund managed by Meridiam Group, invest in infrastructure projects that address the critical needs of urban population growth in Africa and Jordan.
DFC financing supported the expansion and modernization of the Poti New Sea Port, which began operations in early 2022. DFC's support helped develop a new marine terminal to accommodate larger vessels up to 253 meters in length carrying up to 50,000 tons of cargo. The financing is also supporting additional storage facilities and transportation infrastructure including a modern hydraulic system needed to support expanded operations.
A DFC investment guaranty to Smart RJ Concessionária de Iluminação Pública SPE S.A. (Smart Rio) will support the modernization and maintenance of public lighting systems in Rio de Janeiro. Once fully implemented, the project anticipates a reduction of between 120,000 and 150,000 tons of CO2 equivalent per year.
A $9 million DFC loan helped Ampersand, a young company headquartered in Kigali, Rwanda, build a fleet of electronic motorbikes in Rwanda and expand into Kenya to provide sustainable replacements to gas-powered motorcycle taxis.
DFC financing to the Meridiam Infrastructure Africa Fund is supporting the Dakar Bus Rapid Transit project to expand mass transit in and around the city. The project will introduce more than 140 electric buses and construct new roads and garages for the fleet.
Up to $250 million in financing is supporting construction of the 84 kilometer Rumichaca-Pasto Toll Road in southeastern Colombia. The new four-lane highway will reduce transit times between the city of Pasto and Ipiales near the Ecuador border, and improve safety along treacherous mountain corridors with improved lighting shoulders, signage, and road design.
$100 million in financing is helping Africell expand affordable mobile voice and data services in The Gambia, Sierra Leone, Uganda and the Democratic Republic of the Congo, and upgrade its network equipment to accommodate increased traffic. The World Bank estimates that a 10 percent increase in mobile phone technology coverage in developing countries will increase annual economic growth by 1.2 percent, and that a 10 percent increase in broadband penetration results in a 1.4 percent increase in annual economic growth in low and middle-income countries.
$200 million in long-term financing helped developer HAS Development Corporation and its partners attract additional lenders into the deal so that there was sufficient financing to move the project forward.
Financing totaling $250 million together with $150 million in political risk insurance supported construction of a 202-mile pipeline running from an aquifer in southern Jordan to Amman. The pipeline has the capacity to transport 100 million cubic meters of potable water a year.
DFC is providing $50 million of debt financing to the Meridiam Africa Infrastructure Fund, which is investing in a variety of infrastructure projects. Meridiam’s investments include solar energy projects in Senegal and a geothermal project in Ethiopia, helping those countries grow and diversify their energy supply; a university hospital in Cote d’Ivoire to expand access to healthcare, an airport renovation in Madagascar to support the country’s tourism industry, and port development projects in Gabon and Mauritania to support trade.
Financing supported construction of an oil transshipment terminal—the first private port in Brazil—to move oil extracted offshore in a cost-effective and environmentally sustainable manner from floating production ships to large tankers.
Political risk insurance is supporting construction of a mineral and specialized bulk terminal port, which will advance economic growth by increasing the country’s ability to import and export goods. DFC is providing reinsurance to Chubb European Group SE, which is insuring Meridiam Africa Infrastructure Investments, which owns a 25 percent stake in the project.
Political risk insurance is supporting a project by Houston, Texas-based Noble Energy to rehabilitate a natural gas pipeline and transport natural gas from the Leviathan and Tamar offshore fields in Israel to customers in Egypt.
DFC—through its equity investment in Dolma Impact Fund II—is supporting an investment in the business-to-business logistics provider Upaya City Cargo Pvt. Ltd. Upaya offers an app with a logistics solution for a variety of services, including ride-hailing, inner-city deliveries, last-mile deliveries, sorting and bundling services, warehousing services, and long-distance bulk deliveries around the country.
DFC has invested $10 million in equity in Copia Global, Inc., a nine-year-old e-commerce startup, to help it expand its online retail model with an emphasis on reaching the mass market consumer in Africa. DFC’s equity investment helped mobilize over $40 million of additional third-party capital to support Copia’s growth.
A DFC partial loan guaranty with Almavest Ltd. (ALMA), in collaboration with USAID Pakistan and USAID Egypt, will help Trella Holdings BV strengthen its fast-growing digital logistics business in Egypt and Pakistan to map more efficient routes and connect more shippers and truckers.
DFC provided financing to Africa Data Centres Holdings Limited to support the development, expansion, and operation of seven data centers in South Africa, Kenya, and other DFC-eligible countries. This $300 million direct loan will unlock approximately 31.3 MW of IT load capacity in the next three years. The project is also expected to create over 100 direct formal jobs associated with developing the data centers.
A DFC investment in Chiratae Ventures International Fund IV LLC is supporting investments in multiple technology companies, including Agrostar, which offers an agri-tech platform to help millions of farmers access information and expert advice and purchase the seeds, fertilizers, and other inputs to help them increase yields and reach larger markets.
A loan to Lendable Inc. is supporting the creation of the Lendable Fintech Credit Fund I, which will provide loans to fin-tech companies across Africa and the Indo-Pacific. These fin-tech companies will use innovative technologies such as digital banks and mobile investment accounts to provide credit, working capital, remittances, and payment solutions to underserved customers and MSMEs in target countries.
A DFC equity investment in Dolma Impact Fund II will support investments in healthcare, renewable energy, and technology. Dolma Fund Management, the first private equity fund manager dedicated to investing in Nepal, will target investments that reduce dependence on imported energy, help mitigate the impacts of flood, landslide, and drought on its largely agrarian economy, while promoting the introduction of technology that promotes financial inclusion.
Equity financing is helping the women-owned and women-led e-commerce business Kasha, expand its business selling personal care products to women in Kenya and Rwanda. Kasha offers an online store accessible through basic mobile phones, where consumers can browse, order, make payment and arrange for delivery. The company also works with a network of agents, most of them community health workers, who reach out to women in more remote areas to assist them with their purchases. To date, the company has served 70,000 customers, most of them low-income women.