Co-op Bank inks South Sudan rural finance deal backed by Sh2.6b UNDP fund

Dr Ligane Sene, Deputy Representative and Senior Economist for UNDP in South Sudan sign-off the Workplan documents for the $20 million Rural Enterprise and Agriculture Development project with Elijah Wamalwa, the Managing Director of Co-operative Bank of South Sudan. [Courtesy, Co-op Bank}

The Co-operative Bank of South Sudan, a subsidiary of tier one lender Co-operative Bank of Kenya, has signed a multi-year agreement with the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) to boost agricultural financing and food production in the world's youngest nation.

The South Sudan lender will implement Component II of the Rural Enterprise and Agriculture Development (READ) project under a $20 million (Sh2.58 billion) grant from the International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD), with additional funding from the South Sudanese government and other partners.