Category: news-room-2022

Shelter Afrique grants a line of credit of US$ 13 million to the Bank “Banque Populaire de Mauritanie”, BPM

The facility will be used to provide housing loans to BPM clients.

Nairobi: 8 November 2022: The Board of Directors of Shelter-Afrique, the pan-African housing development finance company, has approved a US$13 million line of credit to the second largest bank in Mauritania, Banque Populaire De Mauritanie (BPM).  

The 10-year loan with a 24-month moratorium will be used to provide mortgage loans to civil servants and staff of well-established private and parastatal companies. The facility may also be used to provide loans to BPM’s corporate clients for the acquisition and marketing of construction materials.

Commenting on the agreement, the Ag. Managing Director of Shelter Afrique; Mr. Kingsley Muwowo, said the line of credit will enable the Bank to expand its operations around affordable housing and contribute to solving the problem of housing shortage in Mauritania. 

“Many African countries are facing a housing shortage and Mauritania is no exception. The approval of the $13 million facility to the Banque Populaire de Mauritanie reaffirms our commitment to addressing Mauritania’s housing shortage by providing affordable housing solutions for its citizens,” said Mr Kingsley.

This is the third line of credit that Shelter Afrique has granted to the Banque Populaire de Mauritanie, the two previous loans having been fully repaid.

For his part, the General Manager of the Banque Populaire de Mauritanie, Mr. Limam Ebnou, welcomed the long-standing partnership between the two institutions.

“Our partnership with Shelter-Afriques dates back to 2011, when Société Mauritania Leasing, which became Banque Populaire de Mauritanie in 2012, benefited from its first facility. We are pleased to partner again with Shelter Afrique for a project of such magnitude, because of the many families that will be impacted.  We look forward to a successful relationship and to continuing to explore other areas of interest together,” said Mr Ebnou.

This facility is expected to have a direct impact on hundreds of families, as the bank aims to roll out the financing across its branch network.

Shelter Afrique approves additional USD13 Million credit line to Mixta Africa

– The facility will be used to finance the Group’s real estate projects in Côte d’Ivoire Senegal and Morocco

Nairobi: November 14, 2022:  Pan-African housing development financier Shelter Afrique has approved USD13 million line of credit to Lagos-based real estate firm, Mixta Real Estate PLC.

The 5-year facility with a moratorium of 24 months has been structured to fund the Group’s current real estate projects in Côte d’Ivoire, Senegal and Morocco.

The USD13 million loan will co-finance the construction of 356 housing units in Côte d’Ivoire, 162 units in Senegal, and 371 units in Morocco, with selling prices varying from USD 26,000 in Morocco, USD 45,000 in Ivory Coast, and between USD36,000 and USD52,000 in Senegal.

Speaking in Nairobi at a signing ceremony, Shelter Afrique Ag. Managing Director Kingsley Muwowo lauded the strong and long term relationship between the two institutions, adding that, “In Mixta Africa, Shelter Afrique has a reliable partner that shares a common goal of developing affordable housing across Africa.”

“We have therefore structured both the Naira and Dollar denominated credit facilities to support their real estate projects. The Naira loans which is supported by the First series of the ₦500 billion bond which raised ₦46 billion, will support Mixta Africa’s projects in Nigeria to guards against forex risks. The Dollar ticket, which is from our own capital resources, will support Mixta’s projects in Morocco, Senegal and Côte d’Ivoire,” Mr. Muwowo said.

Expanded options

Lauding the long term partnership between Mixta Africa and Shelter Afrique, Mixta Africa Executive Director and Chief Financial Officer Mr. Benson Ajayi commended Shelter Afrique for expanding financing option for the real estate sector, adding the strategy deployed by Shelter Afrique to raise fund for housing projects from regional local currency bonds was laudable. 

“We have been looking for such kind of strategy from DFI’s who purport to support us. That Shelter Afrique has been able to do this is really big for us and is what makes this transaction important and successful for us. If shelter Afrique came to us with a Dollar proposition, we would have said no, as our past Dollars transaction had its own share of forex challenges. We are, however, confident that the dollar-denominated facility being extended to us by shelter Afrique to finance projects in Morocco, Senegal and Côte d’Ivoire will not suffer much forex shocks,” Mr. Ajayi said.

More than $50m disbursed

Mr. Muwowo disclosed that out of the USD110 million (₦46 billion) realized from the Naira denominated bond debut in April, more than USD50 million had already been disbursed to finance projects in Nigeria. 

“Two months ago, we approved USD19.5 million (₦8 billion) loan to Mixta Africa to support its affordable housing projects in Nigeria.  Last week, we also approved USD24.03 million (₦10 billion) commercial loan to Landmark Africa to partly finance the construction of mixed-use housing project, Landmark Waterview Apartments and also help the company refinance existing debt. We expect a healthy project pipeline in Nigeria as demand continue to grow,” Mr. Muwowo said.

Mixta Africa is a Pan-African real estate development company headquartered in Lagos, Nigeria. It was established in 2005 and since then, has successfully executed many impactful projects. The company is currently present in 8 countries across Africa with full operations in Nigeria, Senegal, Côte d’Ivoire, Morocco, and Tunisia, but with projects in Algeria, Egypt, and Mauritania.

Shelter Afrique approves USD24 million housing loan to Lagos-based real estate firm, Landmark Africa

– The facility will partly finance the construction of mixed-used housing project, Landmark Waterview Apartments and refinance its existing debt

Nairobi: November 1, 2022: Pan-African housing development financier Shelter Afrique has approved a USD24.03 million (₦10 billion) commercial loan to Lagos-based Tier 1 real estate and property development firm, Landmark Africa.

The 7-year line of credit with a moratorium of 36 months has been structured to partly finance the construction of mixed-use housing project, Landmark Waterview Apartments and refinance its existing debt.

“We are excited to record this significant milestone as the first project we are partnering with Landmark Africa. This is truly a high-point for Shelter Afrique and we are happy that the deal is adding to the long and successful history the Company has had with Nigeria,” Shelter Afrique Ag. Managing Director Kingsley Muwowo said.

“We remain committed to financing real estate projects that promote innovation and affordability, and we look forward to a long-term relationship with Landmark Africa,” he added.

Mixed-use destinations

Commenting on the deal, Landmark Africa Chief Executive Officer, Mr. Paul Onwuanibe said, “the Landmark Africa vision is to create one stop destinations which embody the business, leisure and lifestyle philosophy.”

“Such innovative undertakings in the real estate sector require a formidable financial partnership and we are pleased to have found such a partner in Shelter Afrique. We are equally pleased to receive this long-term funding, which will help accelerate the delivery of the Landmark Waterview Apartments project thus enhancing the residential play within our mixed-use ecosystem while having a multiplier effect on the existing business, leisure and lifestyle service offerings. It will also help align our capital structure to our long-term strategic goals” Mr. Onwuanibe added.

 Key market

Nigeria remains one of the key markets for Shelter Afrique. In addition to the Landmark Africa deal, the Company has so far extended lines of credit to another Lagos-based real estate firm Mixta Africa (USD19.5 million) and Wema Bank (USD10 million), this year alone.

Shelter Afrique Eyes Sovereign Lending Products

• The Company has already conducted an in-house capacity building in partnership with the African Development Bank ahead of launch.

Nairobi: October 24, 2022 – Shelter Afrique is developing a Sovereign Lending product to supplement its traditional products that attend to both the demand and supply sides of the housing value chain, the pan-African housing development financier has disclosed.

Speaking in Nairobi, Shelter Afrique Ag. Managing Director Kingsley Muwowo said Africa’s GDP contraction resulting from COVID-19 pandemic was an alarming sign of slump in the inclusive housing goals in many countries and thus the need by the Company to respond to the risk of a possible governments’ disengagement, while revitalizing its financial agility.

“The COVID pandemic has brought in an era of economic distress throughout Africa with an average of -3.6 per cent recession in 2020, the first recession in SSA in 25 years.  In response, Shelter Afrique recently reviewed its corporate strategic plan with the aim of aligning itself to its members’ priorities and position the company for better performance and enhanced development impact. One of the result of this strategy review is the decision to develop a Sovereign Lending product to serve our member states,” Mr. Muwowo said.

Currently, the Company offers various products and related services including project finance, institutional lending, equity investments & joint ventures, trade finance, and social housing, to support the delivery of affordable housing and commercial real estate.

Capacity building

Mr. Muwowo was speaking at a three-day in-house capacity building on sovereign lending organized by the Company and facilitated by the African Development Bank through its training arm, the African Development Institute.

Through training, Shelter Afrique aims to expand its capacities for funds absorption from the anticipated new business development, carry out product design and development, as well as support the organization’s various departments to ensure the product is developed and executed effectively.

“Internally, these activities will be executed through experts in various departments in liaison with the African Development Institute to ensure the product is well in line with the market needs of our member States,” Mr. Muwowo said.

African Development Institute Divisional Manager, Mr. Chidozie Emenuga said the partnership with Shelter Afrique was part of the Africa Development Bank Group commitment to step up its efforts to help overcome the capacity constraint in Africa.

“Capacity development is key to realizing major development goal including the SDGs- which encompasses housing for all, the Addis Ababa Accord on Accelerating Development Financing, the African Union’s Agenda 2063, and national development goals of African countries,” Mr. Emenuga said.

Emmanuel Addeh in Abuja

The federal government has increased its stake in pan-African housing development financier, Shelter Afrique with about $3.003 billion or $7.15 million in additional capital subscription.

The additional capital subscription at conservative official dollar/naira of N420 to $1, places Nigeria just one per cent  behind top shareholder,  Kenya, a news medium based in the East African country, busiweek, stated yesterday.

Shelter Afrique, headquartered in Kenya, says it’s the only pan-African finance institution that exclusively supports the development of housing and urban development in Africa.

The organisation is a partnership of 44 African governments, the African Development Bank (AfDB) and the Africa Reinsurance Corporation (Africa-Re).
Added to Nigeria’s new payment, the company also received more capital subscriptions from Swaziland and Burkina Faso.

The increase in stake now takes Nigeria’s shareholding to 15.8 per cent, one-percentage point behind top shareholder Kenya, which currently stands at 16.85 per cent.

The other top three shareholders of Shelter Afrique whose shareholdings have now changed include AfDB, which now stands at 12.16 per cent, down from 12.71  per cent; Mali at 5.3 per cent, down from 5.54 per cent; and Ghana at 5.05 per cent, down from 5.28 per cent.

Acting Managing Director and Chief Finance Officer of the organisation, Kingsley Muwowo, was quoted to have lauded the government of Nigeria for its show of confidence in the institution.

He said the move now places Nigeria in a good position to become the largest shareholder in Shelter Afrique when the country fully meets its capital commitment.
“We are grateful to the government of Nigerian for their continued support and the importance they have placed on affordable housing.

“We are especially grateful to the Honourable Minister for Works and Housing Babatunde Fashola, Honorable Minister for State, Engineer Abubakar Aliyu, and Honorable Minister for Finance Dr. Zainab Shamsuna Ahmed, for their long-term support and for honouring this significant payment. “Additionally, we appreciate Nigeria’s active shareholder and board participation,” Mr. Muwowo was quoted to have said.  

The relationship between Nigeria and Shelter Afrique has been growing in recent years. In September 2020, the institution received $9.4 million additional capital subscription from Nigeria.

Other countries that have so far ramped up capital subscription in the Pan-African housing development financier in 2022 are Swaziland and Burkina Faso which paid $317,854.54 and $34,610.00 respectively, for additional stakes.
“So far, we have received $7,504,295.45 in additional capital from member states within the last six months of 2022.

“We are grateful to our shareholders for this much needed capital injection which will go a long way in strengthening the capital structure of the company to support the ongoing fund-raising efforts to raise additional debt capital required to support project pipeline which now stands at $1 billion across 44 member countries,” Mr. Muwowo said.

Shelter Afrique recently completed a debut N46 billion ($110.7 million) Series 1 fixed rate senior unsecured bond issuance in Nigeria’s capital market under its N200 billion (US$481.3 million) bond issuance programme for housing and urban development in Nigeria.

“We are grateful to our shareholders for this much needed capital injection which will go a long way in strengthening the capital structure of the company to support the ongoing fund-raising efforts to raise additional debt capital required to support project pipeline which now stands at $1 billion across 44 member countries,” Mr. Muwowo said.

Shelter Afrique recently completed a debut N46 billion ($110.7 million) Series 1 fixed rate senior unsecured bond issuance in Nigeria’s capital market under its N200 billion (US$481.3 million) bond issuance programme for housing and urban development in Nigeria.

The company plans similar bond issuance in East African markets including Kenya, Uganda, Tanzania and Rwanda.Earlier in the year, the firm announced that it was in the middle of a restructuring programme aimed at lifting the institution from a financial abyss, leading to the sack of its erstwhile chief executive, Zimbabwean national Andrew Chimphondah, whose contract was scheduled to have run until 2024 from September 2018.

The exit of Chimphondah from the business followed a board decision that appointed its  Chief Finance Officer, Muwowo, to take over the position in an acting capacity, pending the recruitment of a substantive managing director.

Shelter Afrique fell into the loss making territory in 2015 following alleged years of mismanagement that led to the ouster of the former Managing Director, James Mugerwa, over allegations of financial impropriety and governance issues.

Shelter Afrique’s debut ₦46 billion bond issuance in Nigeria’s capital market oversubscribed by 60.7%, reflecting strong investor appetite  

Abuja, Nigeria – 25 April 2022

The Company for Habitat and Housing in Africa (Shelter Afrique), the pan-African development finance institution exclusively dedicated to housing finance in Africa, is pleased to announce the successful completion of its debut ₦46 billion (US$110.7 million) Series 1 Fixed Rate Senior Unsecured Bond Issuance in Nigeria’s capital market under its ₦200 billion (US$481.3 million) bond issuance programme.

The dual tranche bond issuance was 60.7% oversubscribed with the order book peaking at ₦64.3 billion (US$154.6 million), enabling Shelter Afrique to exercise the ‘green shoe’ option and raise an additional ₦6 billion (US$14.4 million) more than the original ₦40 billion plan (US$96.3 million). The bond issuance attracted participation from a diverse range of institutional investors including pension funds, banks, and insurance companies, supported by an AA rating from GCR Ratings and an A+ rating from Agusto & Co. The high oversubscription demonstrates investors’ confidence in Shelter Afrique’s mandate to enable housing development in Africa, its strong management team, business strategy and credit profile. The 5-year Tranche A bonds priced at 13.00% and the 7-year Tranche B bonds priced at 13.25%. The tenors of the bonds are aligned with the organisation’s housing finance strategy and plans in Nigeria. Shelter Afrique will use the bond proceeds to fund mass housing development by tier 1 real estate developers, and to provide lines of credit.

FDSH Capital Limited acted as the Lead Issuing House while ARM Securities Limited, FCMB Capital Markets Limited and United Capital PLC acted as the Joint Issuing Houses to the bond issuance. Other professional parties include Aluko & Oyebode and Banwo & Ighodalo who acted as Solicitors to the Issue/Issuer and Solicitors to the Trustee respectively. United Capital Trustees Limited and CardinalStone Registrars Limited acted as the Trustee and Registrar respectively. The Receiving Banks include FSDH Merchant Bank Limited, Stanbic IBTC PLC and United Bank for Africa PLC.

Announcing the result, Shelter Afrique’s Acting Managing Director, Kingsley Muwowo expressed delight at the success of the bond issuance and thanked the Issuing Houses and other professional parties for the timely and successful completion of the bond issuance. He also extended his appreciation to the Federal Government of Nigeria through the Ministry of Finance, Budget and National Planning; the Securities and Exchange Commission; the National Pension Commission, and the Ministry of Works and Housing. He thanked the Board of Directors, Management and Staff of Shelter Afrique for their invaluable support throughout the process.

Mr. Muwowo noted that: “this is the first time Shelter Afrique is tapping the Nigerian debt capital market and the positive market reception is a clear indication of investor confidence in our long-term value proposition for the Nigerian housing market. We would like to assure our investors that we shall put the proceeds of the bond issue into good use that will ensure that more value is created for them”.

Mr. Muwowo said the issuance of the Naira-denominated bonds reflects the organisation’s desire to focus on tailor-made, long-term funding solutions for the provision of affordable and adequate housing in Nigeria and across Africa. He also noted that the volatile foreign exchange rate regimes in most member countries is one of the major challenges of financing affordable and decent housing in Africa.  He explained that: “Constant currency fluctuations make it difficult for those who borrow in foreign currencies to honour their loans because of the foreign exchange exposure risks. Through this bond issuance, developers and primary mortgage lenders in Nigeria will be able to access funding in Naira, thereby reducing such risks”.

Speaking at the signing ceremony held in Lagos, Nigeria, the Managing Director of FSDH Capital Limited, Tolu Osinibi, said: “FSDH Capital is pleased to have advised Shelter Afrique on its successful debut bond issuance in Nigeria’s capital market. Shelter Afrique continues to play a pivotal role in housing development across Africa and the success of the bond issuance will encourage other supranational financial institutions to tap Nigeria’s debt capital market for their Naira funding needs. We thank the investor community for their support on the bond issuance. We also thank the Board and management of Shelter Afrique for trusting us with this milestone transaction, and their commitment and dedication throughout the process.”

Exchange Rate:  1US$ = N415.58