Despite the security challenges which were observed in one of the Member States, the economic performance of WAEMU in 2012 was better than that of 2011. Indeed, sub-regional growth which fell considerably in 2011 (to roughly 1%), rose to 5.8% in 2012.
Among the factors responsible for this upward trend are the economic recovery in Côte d’Ivoire, the recovery of agricultural production in a number of Member States and the commencement of oil production in Niger. Some countries in the Union have faced inflationary pressures, particularly in respect of food product and oil prices. Nonetheless, inflation remained low (2.3%) on the average.
With regard to BOAD in particular, the annual amount of medium and long-term loans (not including commitments in respect of the Energy Development Fund) increased by 55.4% to FCFA 433.3 billion compared to 2011. Fresh funding made it possible to support the execution of fifty-one (51) investment projects in such areas as food security, power generation and distribution, road or airport infrastructure, etc. The Bank also carried out three (3) equity investment transactions involving a total amount of FCFA18.4 billion.
