[Feature Report] AFD Group's 80th Anniversary: Our Work as Illustrated by Six Flagship Programs
published on 02 December 2021
For almost a century, Agence Française de Développement has financed and supported, on the ground, at the grassroots and from a distance, actions of solidarity all over the world. For the AFD Group - with its subsidiary for the private sector Proparco and soon, Expertise France – it’s our way of Being by your side. Through the six programs presented below, we illustrate the diversity of our work, particularly as it helps fulfill the Sustainable Development Goals, and brings us towards A World in Common.
Réunion: Where the sun fuels local agriculture and social reintegration
In the Indian Ocean, the island of Reunion and its 860,000 inhabitants depend heavily on imports. Since 2014 however, this overseas department has found a way to harvest solar energy on its own, by hosting a photovoltaic power plant coupled with an electricity storage system. This in turn powers a farm at the heart of the Port detention center. It’s a global innovation that serves the environmental, economic and social development of the island.
Supporting Innovative African Start-ups
Since 2017 by Proparco, AFD’s subsidiary dedicated to the private sector, has supported the TLcom Capital investment fund which backs a dozen young African companies with high potential. They use digital technology to meet essential needs, from training in computer programming to food retail.
Using Soccer to tackle gender inequality
Agence Française de Développement and FIFA are supporting the “Championnes” (champion girls and women) program implemented by the NGO Plan International in Benin, Guinea and Togo. The initiative aims to reduce gender inequalities through women's football, starting in the protective environment of the school.
A Lifeline in Lebanon
The social, economic and political situation in Lebanon has plunged many inhabitants into brutal impoverishment. In a country where mental health care is still taboo, the NGO Embrace has been providing tailored psychological support to the growing number of people suffering from mental disorders. It’s an invaluable initiative that began in 2014, and which continues to help thousands of people, encouraging them to regain hope.
Supporting Tunisia’s Drive to Improve Low-income Urban Areas
With urban populations increasingly dense, and the challenges of urbanization all the more evident, AFD is implementing programs aimed at improving the quality of life of residents of working-class neighborhoods. The Proville and Urban Pépinières schemes are two emblematic examples.
Public-Private Partnerships Push Sustainable Development in Brazil's South-East
With support from AFD and a Powerful Public-Private Partnership, a coalition is helping develop the country’s southeast. A state with wide social disparities, Minas Gerais is trying to reduce the divide. AFD and its partners are supporting the initiative of this territory – which is roughly the size of France – for the implementation of an ambitious plan to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and adapt to climate change.
