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The Saudi Fund for Development (SFD) has signed loan agreements worth US$25 million for the construction of social housing and the reconstruction of a school in the Seychelles.

Signed on 29 September, the first development loan worth US$15 million will finance the construction of 172 low-income housing units in seven districts between 2024 and 2026.

The project entails the construction of three and four-storey residential buildings, each containing six to eight apartments with an area ranging from 70 to 80 square metres. It also includes establishing utilities and public services, rainwater drainage and sewage works at some of the sites.

The seven districts are Beau Vallon, Anse Aux Pins, Au Cap, Glacis, Anse Royale, Perseverance and Baie Ste Anne Praslin.

“Depending on the size of the projects, the smaller ones will take up to eight months to complete, while the bigger ones will take up to two years,” said Jitesh Shah, CEO, Seychelles Infrastructure Agency, at the signing. “We are planning to start construction on the first batch early next year.”

Seychelles’ Principal Secretary for Housing Jude Florentine added that the loan will help to ease the pressure on housing supply in the country.

"The loan is an additional funding for the construction of social housing on top of what the government is providing in the national budget,” Florentine said.

#Seychelles 🇸🇨| #SFD’s CEO, Mr. Sultan Al-Marshad, signed today two new development loan agreements with the Minister of Finance, National Planning, and Trade, Hon. Naadir Hassan, through which SFD is contributing $25 million to support the social housing project and the… pic.twitter.com/LGf6WIEMUR

— الصندوق السعودي للتنمية (@SaudiFund_Dev) September 29, 2023

The second loan of $10 million will finance the reconstruction of La Digue School, located on the island of La Digue, the country's fourth-largest. 

The reconstruction project is expected to get under way in 2024 and be completed in two years. The work will involve adding new facilities to the school while also reconstructing existing buildings.

The scope of the indoor work includes classrooms, computer labs, laboratories, teachers’ quarters, offices, administrative facilities, a medical clinic, a canteen, and restrooms, while the outdoor works include a multi-purpose playground with an amphitheatre, a children’s playground, bicycle parking areas, and stormwater drainage and sewage systems. 

“This work will be undertaken as one project instead of in phases,” said Shah. “First, the government will finance the construction of a temporary school for the reallocation of the students, in order to clear the current site for the construction of the new school. Our objective is to ensure limited disruption to the education of the students while construction is under way.”

Following the loan signings, SFD CEO, Sultan Al-Marshad officially inaugurated the 33kV transmission network on South Mahe island. The fund previously contributed US$20 million to support the construction of the grid.

#Seychelles 🇸🇨 | In the presence of the President of the Republic of Seychelles, H.E. Wavel Ramkalayan; #SFD CEO, Mr. Sultan Al-Marshad, officially inaugurated today in Seychelles, the 33 KV Transmission Network of South Mahe Island Project, with the Minister of Agriculture,… pic.twitter.com/qlE36wbZJW

— الصندوق السعودي للتنمية (@SaudiFund_Dev) September 30, 2023

Since its inception in 1975, the SFD has signed more than 320 loan agreements for development projects and programmes in 41 countries across Sub-Saharan Africa. The total funding commitment reached US$5.3 billion at the end of 2022, representing 28.47% of the fund’s worldwide commitments.

Photo: Loan signing (Source: SFD)