Bank of Africa, Italy’s SACE Partner to Finance Projects Across Africa

Marrakech – Bank of Africa and SACE, the Italian export credit agency owned by Italy’s Ministry of Economy and Finance, signed a cooperation agreement in Casablanca on Friday to develop financing and investment opportunities across the African continent.

The partnership sets out to support the participation of Italian companies and their supply chains in strategic projects throughout Africa. It pairs Bank of Africa’s regional presence and knowledge of local markets with SACE’s insurance, financing, and risk-coverage solutions.

The two institutions will work to identify new operations, structure integrated financial solutions, and open access to competitive financing for projects involving Italian suppliers. The accord also covers business matching, promotion, training, and the sharing of market knowledge, with priority given to energy, infrastructure, agrifood, water resources, health, and education.

The initiative falls under the Mattei Plan for Africa, promoted by the Italian Presidency of the Council of Ministers.

Mario Melillo, SACE’s Chief Network Officer, characterized the partnership as “an important step” in strengthening the agency’s capacity to help Italian firms reach African markets. He described SACE as the export credit agency “most engaged” in Africa in terms of new commitments, a position he tied to the continent’s central role in the agency’s strategy.

Khalid Nasr, executive managing director for Morocco and corporate and investment banking at Bank of Africa, framed the bank as the “commercial gateway” to the continent, providing the “local execution capacity” needed to turn financial arrangements into concrete results. SACE, in his account, secures investments from Europe, while Bank of Africa ensures “their successful implementation and long-term viability in African markets.”

Pasquale Salzano, Italy’s ambassador to Morocco, attended the ceremony alongside the two executives and the group’s corporate and international teams. On social media, he called the agreement “an important step forward” in economic cooperation between Italy, Morocco, and Africa, and pointed to Morocco’s role as a “strategic partner” and a privileged platform for Italian companies expanding toward the continent.

SACE holds a portfolio of insured operations and guaranteed investments of around €290 billion, covering 200 markets through 23 offices in Italy and abroad. Bank of Africa operates in 32 countries across Africa, Europe, Asia, and North America, with nearly 2,000 points of sale serving 6.6 million clients.

The agreement follows another cross-border move this week. Bank of Africa arranged a $300 million international syndicated loan to finance a 160-kilometer road in northern Guinea, a transaction the group presented as Guinea’s first entry into both the international syndicated loan market and the Islamic finance market. The signing took place Wednesday in Conakry.