EBRD provides €50 Mln to two Moroccan banks to support Morocco’s green transition

The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development has approved loans totaling €50 million to two Moroccan banks, namely “Crédit du Maroc” and “Société Générale Maroc” (SGMB), destined to boost Morocco’s green transition.

The loan agreements were signed at the EU-Africa Business Forum in Brussels, co-organized by the European Commission, the African Union Commission, and African and European business organizations.

The new financing lines worth €50 million, €25 million to each of the two banking institutions, are meant to accelerate the Kingdom’s green transition, according to an EBRD statement.

This funding programs are supported by the EU and the Green Climate Fund (GCF) and fall within the framework of the Green Economy Finance Facility program (GEEF).

The financing line to Crédit du Maroc aims to support green investments made by its private corporate clients.

This new line offers companies the opportunity, via Crédit du Maroc, to benefit from free technical assistance and a subsidy of up to 15% of their investment projects.

In February 2020, EBRD had approved a €20 million loan to “Crédit du Maroc” to boost green investment of SMEs and contribute to the development of value chains in the North African Kingdom.

The EBRD funds were to be extended as sub-loans to local SMEs planning to invest in energy and resource efficiency measures and develop their participation in regional value chains. Energy efficient solutions will help SMEs to increase their competitiveness and access new markets.

The financial package of up to €25 million approved for La SGMB is also meant to boost Morocco’s green transition.

Société Générale Maroc will use the funds to extend sub-loans to local citizens, micro-, small and medium-sized enterprises (MSMEs) and other companies for investment in climate change mitigation and adaptation technologies, EBRD said in a statement.

It is the second green facility provided by the EBRD to Société Générale Maroc, under a program devised to raise responsiveness to climate change and to means and technologies likely to mitigate its impact among retail clients, MSMEs and corporates.

The Moroccan bank, as part of the package, will also participate in activities aimed at enhancing gender equality, such as a “train-the-trainers” program on gender-responsive green finance, to help address gender-specific supply-and-demand obstacles.

Morocco is a founding member of the EBRD. To date, the Bank has invested nearly €3.2 billion in the country through some 80 projects.