Case study: How BOAD identifies and works on strategic business opportunities to increase positive and reduce negative impacts

Stakeholder identification and consultation

Please describe which stakeholders (or groups/ types of stakeholders) you have identified, consulted, engaged, collaborated or partnered with for the purpose of implementing the Principles and improving your bank’s impacts. This should include a high-level overview of how your bank has identified relevant stakeholders, what issues were addressed/results achieved and how they fed into the action planning process.

Proactively and responsibly engage, consult, and collaborate with stakeholders to support the achievement of the bank’s objectives.

BOAD is committed to listening to the expectations of its stakeholders. The bank actively engages with key stakeholders, including member countries, the private sector, investors, employees, and regulators. Their insights are vital for understanding the impacts, risks, and opportunities related to the sustainability issues BOAD addresses.

In 2023, the bank conducted a stakeholder consultation to update its materiality matrix and develop its CSR strategic plan for 2025-2029. This process offered an opportunity to review and refresh previously identified issues and to reassess their relevance from the stakeholders’ perspectives.

For the questionnaire on the bank’s economic performance, BOAD collaborated and consulted with the following stakeholders:

• BOAD management (President, Vice-presidents, President’s advisors, directors, deputy directors)
• Ministry members
• Other stakeholders (clients, ministry officials, companies, and business leaders)

For the stakeholder priorities questionnaire, the panel consisted of:

• Employees at headquarters and resident missions
• Internal consultants
• Public companies
• Financial institutions, private sector enterprises, local authorities, SMEs, VSEs, artisans, and others

Regarding suppliers and service providers, efforts are currently underway to develop a responsible purchasing policy that will set out the standards and expectations they must adhere to. In its dealings with suppliers, the bank commits to:

• tirelessly combating all forms of corruption and illicit commercial activities, such as plagiarism, counterfeiting, dumping, and others
• guaranteeing the fulfilment of all contractual obligations, ensuring they are fair and equitable
• considering the expectations of partners, beneficiaries, and suppliers, and prioritizing the swift resolution of complaints and disputes
• ensuring that it does not collaborate with partners whose practices lack responsibility
• actively promoting Corporate Social Responsibility within its areas of influence

Regarding media engagement, including podcasts, interviews, and contributions to articles;

In terms of partnerships, BOAD is actively involved in the Task Force on Nature-related Financial Disclosures (TNFD) and the Task Force on Climate-related Financial Disclosures (TCFD). The bank is also accredited to three financial mechanisms: the Green Climate Fund and the Adaptation Fund under the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC), as well as the Global Environment Facility (GEF) under five conventions, including the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD), the UNFCCC, the Stockholm Convention on Persistent Organic Pollutants, the United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD), the Minamata Convention on Mercury, and the Agreement on Biological Diversity Beyond the Limits of National Jurisdiction (BBNJ).

BOAD has become a member of the Finance In Common Coalition (FICS) on Gender, which is co-chaired by UN Women and the African Development Bank (AfDB). Through this partnership, BOAD is dedicated to collaborating with other member development banks and financial institutions to enhance coordination and mobilization efforts in support of combating gender inequality and promoting the empowerment of women and girls within the global financial system. This new commitment marks a significant advancement in the institution’s efforts to implement transformative gender policies at both the institutional and organizational levels.

BOAD and Africa50 have partnered to develop and co-finance green infrastructure across Africa. A formal agreement has been signed to attract capital from institutional investors for African infrastructure projects and to identify initiatives suitable for co-financing. As part of this collaboration, both organizations have reaffirmed their commitment to work together on financing and developing bankable projects, including climate-resilient infrastructure, to promote sustainable growth and support the energy transition in African nations.

In August 2024, BOAD successfully raised €100 million to support climate change mitigation initiatives in West Africa by subscribing to the first hybrid bond issued by a multilateral bank specifically dedicated to this purpose.

BOAD is also currently exploring the possibility of joining the Equator Principles, the Poseidon Principles, and the Global Compact.

How did BOAD identify and work on strategic business opportunities to increase positive and reduce negative impacts?

In its 2024 PRB Annual Report BOAD reports that it identified and worked on strategic business opportunities to increase positive and reduce negative impacts as follows:

In a context where social and environmental responsibility is increasingly vital for growth and differentiation, BOAD is proactively identifying and developing strategic business opportunities that aim to maximize positive impacts while minimizing negative externalities.

As part of this approach, the bank has received a €506 million guarantee from the Multilateral Investment Guarantee Agency (MIGA). With a maximum duration of fifteen years, this guarantee is a crucial tool for securing financing for projects with significant environmental and social impacts. It mitigates the risk of default by a regional development bank, thereby enhancing investor and financial partner confidence in BOAD’s commitment to sustainable development.

This initiative highlights the international recognition of BOAD’s strategic role as a key player in development financing within the WAEMU region. BOAD remains dedicated to implementing sustainable and innovative financial solutions that turn challenges into opportunities for shared growth.

UN Principles for Responsible Banking: Accelerating a positive global transition for people and the planet

With over 300 signatory banks representing almost half of the global banking industry, the Principles for Responsible Banking are the world’s foremost sustainable banking framework. Through these Principles, the banking community takes action to align core strategies, decision-making, lending and investment with the UN Sustainable Development Goals and international agreements such as the Paris Climate Agreement.

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References:

This case study is based on published information by BOAD, located at the link below. For the sake of readability, we did not use brackets or ellipses. However, we made sure that the extra or missing words did not change the report’s meaning. If you would like to quote these written sources from the original please revert to the following link:

https://admin.boad.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/08/RAPPORT-BOAD-PRB-ANG.pdf

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