Month: February 2021

Nairobi: 18 February 2021: Pan-African housing development financier, Shelter Afrique, has been recognized as an EDGE Champion by IFC, a member of the World Bank Group, for its commitment to green building construction in Africa.
Shelter Afrique has committed to certifying 4,416 affordable housing units with EDGE, a global green building certification system, in line with its 2021-2025 corporate strategy. To achieve EDGE certification, the units will demonstrate resource efficiency of at least 20 percent in energy, water, and embodied energy in materials.

Through its Centre of Excellence (CoE), Shelter Afrique will collaborate with IFC to deliver an EDGE Discovery Workshop to developers across Africa to accelerate the development of resource-efficient affordable housing.

“We view EDGE as a mark of value that will shape and grow demand for our sustainable housing communities in Africa,” said Shelter Afrique Chief Executive Officer Andrew Chimphondah. “Additionally, living in an EDGE-certified home benefits the homeowner and their family through significant savings in utility costs.”

By leveraging proprietary technologies, processes and sustainable measures, Shelter Afrique plans to incorporate EDGE certification into its’ corporate strategy. This commitment indicates Shelter Afrique’s resolve to support Africa’s sustainability drive by contributing to solving the continent’s affordable housing crises through green building practices.

An innovation of IFC, EDGE is an online platform, a green building standard, and a global certification system. EDGE Champions are recognized for their adoption of EDGE certification and their work with IFC to steer the construction sector onto a more low-carbon path.

About IFC

IFC – a sister organization of the World Bank and member of the World Bank Group – is the largest global development institution focused on the private sector in emerging markets. We work in more than 100 countries, using our capital, expertise, and influence to create markets and opportunities in developing countries. In fiscal year 2020, we invested more than $22 billion in private companies and financial institutions in developing countries, leveraging the power of the private sector to end extreme poverty and boost shared prosperity. For more information, visit www.ifc.org.

About EDGE

An innovation of IFC, EDGE helps property developers to build and brand green in a fast, easy and affordable way. EDGE is supported by free software that encourages solutions to reduce energy, water and the energy used to make building materials by at least 20 percent, which is the standard for EDGE certification. The program has been generously supported by the following donors: Austria, Canada, Denmark, ESMAP, EU, Finland, GEF, Hungary, Japan, Switzerland and the UK. For more information, visit www.edgebuildings.com.