E-Financial
AfDB Approves Policy for Victims of Bank-financed Operations
The Board of Directors of the African Development Bank Group has approved a new policy framework for the Independent Recourse Mechanism.
The IRM provides individuals or communities who are adversely affected by bank-financed operations with an independent mechanism through which they can raise their concerns.
They can also seek redress and hold the bank to account for ensuring it complies with its policies and procedures related to sustainability.
The new policy is aimed at strengthening accountability and providing more effective recourse to people affected by bank-financed operations.
According to a statement from the AfDB on Friday, the policy framework is the result of series of internal and public stakeholder consultations that began in December 2019.
This process was part of the third policy review of the bank’s Independent Review Mechanism.
It further marked the first time that the IRM had engaged in such a comprehensive public consultation process.
David Simpson, Director, Compliance Review and Mediation Unit, AfDB, said the new policy represented a significant step forward for the IRM.
“The new policy framework restructures the complaints’ mechanism, to make it more accessible, efficient and predictable.
“It also simplifies the complaint process for users of the Independent Recourse Mechanism,while enhancing its transparency, and providing clearer guidelines for case management.”
Stephanie Amoako, a Senior Policy Associate at Accountability Counsel, an international civil society organisation said: “The new accountability policy, if properly implemented, better serves the needs of communities across Africa.
” This is by removing barriers to access the IRM and creating a more equitable process for those using the mechanism.”
Accountability Counsel supports communities adversely impacted by internationally financed projects.
According to the statement, a new name accompanies the new policy as the Independent Review Mechanism will now be known as ” the Independent Recourse Mechanism.”
The new mechanism has been restructured, replacing the previous external experts panel model with a fully integrated unit that will now lead all problem-solving and compliance review functions.
The new policy strengthens accessibility for complainants by allowing complaints to be filed by a single person.
It enables the mechanism to advise communities on how to submit complaints if needed.
It adopts a zero-tolerance standard for retaliation against complainants and rejects any form of threats.
It also rejects intimidation, harassment, violence, or discrimination towards those that raise concerns through the Independent Recourse Mechanism.
The mechanism also requires AfDB management to make the IRM better known among affected communities by disclosing information about the mechanism at a project level.
Furthermore, the new operational rules and procedures approved by AfDB’s board also provides the IRM with some advantages.
For istance, it has the ability to initiate compliance review processes in certain circumstances without a formal complaint from affected communities.
It also increases complainants’ participation in the complaint-handling process by allowing them the opportunity to comment on draft compliance review reports before they go to the board.
The operational rules and procedures also commit the IRM to pursue a culturally appropriate and gender-sensitive complaint process.
It allows the IRM to consider a complaint’s eligibility even in the case of parallel judicial or non-judicial proceedings.
It further empowers the IRM to make recommendations to the bank on issues related to redress and remedy.
“That is when individuals and communities are adversely impacted as a result of bank-financed operations.
“As well as ensure that agreements reached by parties in problem-solving activities are aligned to international norms,” it added.
While the new policy enters into force with immediate effect and would apply to all new complaints, it is expected that the IRM would require a reasonable transition period to fully implement the new policy.
Where appropriate, ongoing complaints will be transitioned to the new policy over time.
The bank’s complaint mechanism became operational in 2006 and has received over 100 complaints submitted by civil society organisations and affected communities.
The mandate of the IRM covers both public and private sector operations of the bank group.
Debt Management Office (DMO) said the federal government spent N3.14 trillion on servicing its domestic debt in the first quarter of 2026.
The office disclosed the data in its latest domestic debt service report for Q1 2026.
The figure comprises N2.97 trillion in interest payments and N169.68 billion in principal repayments.
The agency said in January, the government spent N741.82 billion on domestic debt service, while the figure rose to N967.67 billion in February.
Debt service increased further to N1.43 trillion in March, bringing the total for the quarter to N3.14 trillion.
The March figure was 47.7 percent higher than the N967.67 billion recorded in February and 92.7 percent above the N741.82 billion spent in January.
Also, the debt office said interest payments accounted for about 94.6 percent of total domestic debt service during the quarter.
The DMO said treasury bills accounted for the largest share of interest payments at N1 trillion, while interest on federal government bonds stood at N1.96 trillion.
The agency said the government also paid N4.24 billion in interest on FGN savings bonds during the period.
The DMO said the principal component of the debt service comprised N169.68 billion in repayments on local-denominated promissory notes.
Overall, the government’s domestic debt service rose sharply through the quarter, with March accounting for almost half of the N3.14 trillion spent between January and March.
Nigeria’s public debt increased by 0.01 percent to N159.35 trillion in the Q1 of 2026.
Interswitch Group, an integrated digital payments and commerce company, together with global banking software provider, Temenos have reassured the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) of their commitment to advancing the modernisation of Nigeria’s financial services sector.
Interswitch and Temenos had earlier in June announced a strategic partnership across Africa which would see Interswitch leverage Temenos solutions – across core banking, digital banking, payments, wealth management and financial crime mitigation – to provide cloud-hosted and on-premises managed services to banks and financial institutions across Africa.
This will enable institutions to progressively transform their banking platform and evolve to more customer-centric business models. The service will initially support key African markets including Nigeria, Ghana, Côte d’Ivoire, Kenya and others.
The recent regulatory visit to CBN headquarters in Abuja, was led by the Founder and Group Chief Executive Officer of Interswitch, Mitchell Elegbe, and Managing Director for the Middle East and Africa (MEA) at Temenos, Santhosh Rao, as part of the ongoing efforts by both organisations to deepen collaboration with Central Banks across the African region on the future of digital banking infrastructure across Nigeria and key African markets.
Discussions centred on the strategic partnership between Interswitch and Temenos, and how it will enable Nigerian financial institutions to progressively modernise their core banking platforms and transition to more customer-centric business models.
The two organisations also explored opportunities to work with the CBN in charting new frontiers in Central Bank Digital Currency (CBDC) innovation, leveraging resilient financial networks and decentralised application platforms to support the issuance and management of CBDCs.
Commenting on the visit, Elegbesaid: “Our partnership as Interswitch with Temenos and our continued engagement with the Central Bank of Nigeria reflect a shared commitment to building banking infrastructure that is resilient, inclusive, and ready for the next phase of Africa’s financial evolution.
We are proud to be at the table as these conversations shape the future of digital banking technology and innovation across key Africa markets…”
The Bank of Industry, through BOI Financing SPV Plc, has opened subscriptions for its inaugural Series 1 Fixed Rate Bond worth up to N250bn under its $1bn multi-currency instruments programme, seeking to raise long-term capital to finance businesses across Nigeria’s priority sectors.
The offer, which opened on 5 August and closes on 11 August, is being arranged by Chapel Hill Denham as the lead issuing house. The five-year bond is priced within a yield range of 17.35 per cent to 17.50 per cent and will be listed on the FMDQ Securities Exchange.
According to the offer document, proceeds from the issuance will be deployed to finance eligible businesses and projects across sectors, including agriculture and food processing, healthcare, engineering and technology, renewable energy, petrochemicals, oil and gas, creative industries and solid minerals, in line with BOI’s development finance mandate.
The lender said the financing is expected to improve access to medium and long-term funding for Nigerian enterprises, expand productive capacity, create and preserve jobs, deepen local value addition, support import substitution, boost exports and strengthen domestic value chains.
BOI, Nigeria’s foremost development finance institution, said it has provided funding to more than one million businesses across the country and disbursed over N1.27tn between 2023 and 2025. The institution operates across 34 states and the Federal Capital Territory and is jointly owned by the Ministry of Finance Incorporated and the Central Bank of Nigeria.
The bank also highlighted its financial performance, reporting a 36 per cent compound annual growth rate in gross earnings between 2021 and 2025.
Interest income rose 64 per cent to N884bn in 2025 from N538bn in the previous year, while its capital adequacy ratio stood at 39 per cent, nearly four times the regulatory minimum of 10 per cent. Its non-performing loan ratio was 1.7 per cent, below the CBN’s prudential limit of five per cent.
The bond has been assigned AAA ratings by Agusto & Co. and Intelligence Africa, reflecting the issuer’s strong capitalization, profitability, liquidity and ownership structure.
The issuance is open to institutional and qualified investors with a minimum subscription of N5m and additional investments in multiples of N1m. Interest will be paid semi-annually at a fixed rate, while principal repayment will begin in the third year through equal semi-annual amortised instalments until maturity in 2031.
The bond is also exempt from tax, making it an attractive investment option for investors seeking stable returns amid expectations of declining interest rates.
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