MIGA Guarantee to Expand Morocco’s UM6P Campus
WASHINGTON, September 25, 2024 – The Multilateral Investment Guarantee Agency (MIGA), part of World Bank Group Guarantees, issued a guarantee of €243.2 million (~$270 million) to Crédit Agricole Corporate and Investment Bank (CA CIB), and Société Générale (SocGen) for their loans to OCP Group, Morocco’s largest state-owned enterprise, to finance the expansion of the Mohammed VI Polytechnic University (UM6P) Rabat campus. The guarantee provides coverage for up to 10 years against the risk of non-honoring of financial obligations by a state-owned enterprise.
The MIGA guarantee will enable OCP Group to secure financing from international lenders, allowing it to diversify its sources of financing and to reduce its overall financial costs for its educational activities. The project will include the construction of diverse academic, sports, and accommodation facilities to provide high-quality secondary academic education and sports training to talented athletes, as well as a state-of-the-art 1,500-seat conference center located near Rabat, designed to host large-scale events, and to promote knowledge, science and culture.
MIGA previously provided a guarantee of €570 million to support the construction of the Rabat campus of UM6P.
“We are building on our earlier support for the development of UM6P’s Rabat campus,” said Hiroshi Matano, MIGA Executive Vice President. “The guarantee enables a developmentally important state-owned enterprise to access sustainable long-term financing amid challenging global conditions to finance a major social infrastructure project.”
UM6P is a Moroccan university focused on developing solutions to specific continental and more broadly global challenges. The university is owned by the OCP Foundation, a non-profit organization affiliated with OCP Group. The project aims to increase access to high-quality secondary education for primarily underserved students, enhance the scope and quality of the country’s academic, sports and conference facilities, and expand the type of events that the region of Rabat can host in the areas of education, science, athletics, arts, culture, business, international conferences, and tourism, in alignment with the strategic goals of the Moroccan government.
Sustainability being at the core of UM6P’s development strategy, the project’s buildings, facilities, and landscape features are designed to actively reduce their greenhouse gas footprint according to green building standards and to mitigate potential physical climate risks, allowing it to be climate resilient and achieve climate mitigation and adaptation benefits.
“We are proud to support OCP and its strong ambitions in terms of social inclusion through education to allow for the rise of the next generation of African leaders. By financing this landmark transaction, SG confirms its long-term commitment to the development of Africa and Morocco and more specifically to its promising youth,” said Cécile Camilli, Global Head of Development & Structured Export Finance at Société Générale.
“We are grateful for MIGA’s continued support. Expanding UM6P’s Rabat campus is key to advancing world-class education and innovation in Morocco,” said Mostafa Terrab, Chairman and CEO of OCP Group. “This project enhances our infrastructure, and aligns with our sustainability goals, ensuring a resilient, climate-conscious future. We take pride in empowering women in science, which is central to our vision of inclusive growth and leadership in research.”
"By promoting educational excellence, social diversity and gender equality while abiding by high environmental requirements to reduce the carbon footprint of its buildings, the expansion of UM6P supports the long-term vision of Morocco, and Crédit Agricole CIB is proud to contribute to this project. OCP entrusts us with a lead role in arranging this MIGA covered loan, giving us the opportunity to deliver a transaction meeting our client’s objectives. This also confirms our Bank’s commitment to support the growth of Morocco as a sustainable economy," said André Gazal, Global Head of Export Finance for Crédit Agricole Corporate and Investment Bank.
OCP Group has agreed to identify opportunities to increase women in scientific research in Morocco by developing and implementing a Women in Science Empowerment program at UM6P. This project is aligned with the new World Bank Group Gender Strategy and the objective of engaging women as leaders.
About Crédit Agricole Corporate and Investment Bank (CA CIB)
CA CIB headquartered in Montrouge, France, is one of the 10 largest worldwide financial
Institutions, with operations in more than 50 countries. The bank's principal lines of business
include retail banking and corporate and investment banking offering a range of products and services in capital markets, brokerage, investment banking, structured finance and commercial banking. Crédit Agricole CIB is the Corporate and Investment Banking arm of Crédit Agricole Group, the world's 10th largest banking group in terms of balance sheet. The bank provides support to clients in large international markets through its network with a presence in major countries in Europe, the Americas, Asia Pacific and the Middle East. CA CIB is rated by Moody’s at Aa3 (stable), by S&P at A+ (stable) and at A+ (stable) by Fitch ratings.
About Société Générale (SocGen)
SocGen operates in 66 countries and has a diversified and integrated banking model, which includes three core businesses: i) French Retail Banking; ii) International Retail Banking (IRB) and Financial Services (FS); as well as iii) Global Banking and Investor Solutions. In 2022, the Group generated record net banking income of €28.1 billion, and an underlying annual net profit of €5.6 billion. SocGen is rated A, A1 and A by Fitch, Moody’s and Standard and Poor’s (S&P).
About OCP Group
OCP Group helps feed a growing global population by providing it with the essential elements for soil fertility and plant growth. With over a century of expertise and a turnover of more than US$ 9 billion in 2023, OCP is the world leader in plant nutrition solutions and phosphate-based fertilizers. Headquartered in Morocco and present on five continents, OCP Group has over 17,000 employees and works closely with more than 350 customers around the world. OCP recently launched a green investment strategy, dedicated to increasing fertilizer production and investing in renewable energy. The strategy foresees an overall investment of approximately USD13 billion over the period 2023-2027, which will enable the Group to use 100% non-conventional water in 2024 (to ensure its complete autonomy, including a water desalination capacity of 560 million m3 per year by 2026), 100% clean energy by 2027 and achieve full carbon neutrality by 2040 (Scopes 1 and 2 by 2030, and Scope 3 by 2040), while increasing the production of green fertilizers. The Group is firmly convinced that leadership and profitability are synonymous with social responsibility and sustainable development. Its strategic vision sits at the junction of these two dimensions.
For more information: www.ocpgroup.ma
About UM6P
The University Mohammed VI Polytechnic (UM6P) is a Moroccan university focusing on developing solutions to specific continental and more broadly global challenges. UM6P is oriented toward education and research, with strong links to industry, business, and innovation. The university commits itself to empowering a new generation of talents that will build and lead the future of Africa. It has a total of 5,684 students, including 721 PhD students, with a research and academic community representing 33 nationalities.
For more information: www.um6p.ma/en
About World Bank Group Guarantees
Initiated in 2024, World Bank Group Guarantees consolidates all guarantee products and experts from across the World Bank Group institutions at MIGA. It provides a simplified and comprehensive menu of guarantee solutions, enabling clients to select the instrument that best suits their needs. The platform streamlines processes, removes redundancies, and provides greater accessibility by de-risking investments in developing countries. Its goal is to boost the WBG’s annual guarantee issuance to $20 billion by 2030.
For more information about the guarantee platform, please visit: https://www.worldbank.org/wbgguarantees
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Contact:
In Washington: Elizabeth Howton, (202) 458-5922 or ehowton@worldbankgroup.org