The signing took place during a ceremony in Cairo on Wednesday.

The loan will be co-financed with the Japanese Sumitomo Mitsui Banking Corporation (SMBC) and Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group (MUFG).

Afrexim is a multilateral financial development institution which includes 51 member states in Africa.

It has been supporting Africa in mitigating the impact of COVID-19 since it broke out through its extended finances.

Under the agreement, Afreximbank will deploy the loan to advance the development of local production capacities for vaccines and medical products, with the overarching ambition to promote the self-reliance of African countries in their response to the pandemic and reduce their dependence on non-African products and international supply chains.

Meanwhile, JICA’s loan will be utilised to manufacture medical and pharmaceutical products, including vaccine manufacturing lines, development of supply bases for those products, and development of medical and health facilities, such as hospitals, through Afreximbank.

It will also mobilise Japanese commercial banks’ capital within the continent, which is expected to lead to the creation of a stronger healthcare system and smoother recovery of social and economic activities from COVID-19, according to JICA.