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GE Healthcare, NSIA and IFC Partner to Strengthen Medical Equipment Financing Support Across Africa
May 28, 2021
Johannesburg, South Africa, May 28, 2021—To help small businesses in Africa’s health sector strengthen their response to COVID-19 and other pressing healthcare challenges, GE Healthcare and NSIA Banque Côte d’Ivoire have partnered with IFC’s Africa Medical Equipment Facility to support healthcare providers in Cameroon, Côte d’Ivoire, Kenya, Rwanda, Senegal, Tanzania, and Uganda access essential medical equipment.
The participation of GE Healthcare and NSIA Banque Côte d’Ivoire further expands the reach of the IFC-led facility, which was announced in April and provides risk-sharing facilities to help small and medium-size businesses access up to $300 million in loans and leases.
Africa’s smaller healthcare operators often struggle to secure bank loans due to perceived high investment risks, limiting their ability to buy or lease the medical equipment and other vital health services they need to serve patients across income levels.
The program, which spans the African continent, is an opportunity to increase affordability and access to financing but also access to high-quality medical equipment and care.
Through a multi-stakeholder approach, IFC is partnering with medical equipment manufacturers and local financial institutions to support healthcare providers across East and West Africa to strengthen the healthcare industry and provide individual loans of between $5,000 and $2 million.
“We are pleased to have partnered with IFC and NSIA to increase access to financing for small and medium healthcare providers across the region. GE is committed to bridging the healthcare infrastructure gap in Africa. Through the provision of medical equipment and partnerships such as this one, we hope to improve healthcare quality and accessibility for all,” said Eyong Ebai, General Manager, Sub-Saharan Africa of GE Healthcare.
“We are delighted to sign this new agreement with IFC. It will help us support our healthcare clients to acquire equipment and renew their technical platforms. Through our collaboration with IFC and the renowned equipment manufacturers involved in the program, we are taking a further step in contributing to the protection of our people, which is an important pillar of our corporate responsibility,” said Leonce Yace, CEO of NSIA Banque Côte d’Ivoire.
"Many smaller healthcare businesses in Africa don't have the equipment they need to respond to COVID-19 and deliver other vital services," said Makhtar Diop, IFC's Managing Director. "Unlocking access to finance can save lives now and will, in the long term, strengthen healthcare systems across the continent."
Supported by the International Development Association Private Sector Window (IDA-PSW) Blended Finance Facility and the Global Financing Facility for Women, Children and Adolescents (GFF), the facility falls under IFC’s Global Health Platform, which was launched to help developing countries fight the coronavirus pandemic and to increase the resilience of countries’ healthcare systems.
The facility includes an advisory services program to help small healthcare businesses strengthen their medical equipment procurement processes, financial management competencies, and business planning. The advisory program will also help participating financial institutions strengthen their credit underwriting skills for the healthcare sector.
About IFC
IFC—a member of the World Bank Group—is the largest global development institution focused on the private sector in emerging markets. We work in more than 100 countries, using our capital, expertise, and influence to create markets and opportunities in developing countries. In fiscal year 2020, we invested $22 billion in private companies and financial institutions in developing countries, leveraging the power of the private sector to end extreme poverty and boost shared prosperity. For more information, visit www.ifc.org.
About GE HealthCare Technologies Inc.
GE HealthCare is a leading global healthcare solutions provider of advanced medical technology, pharmaceutical diagnostics, and AI, cloud and software solutions that help clinicians tackle the world’s most complex diseases. Serving patients and providers for 130 years, GE HealthCare is delivering bold innovations designed for the next era of medicine across its Advanced Imaging Solutions, Patient Care Solutions, and Pharmaceutical Diagnostics segments to help clinicians deliver more personalized, precise patient care. We are a $20.6 billion business with approximately 54,000 colleagues working to create a world where healthcare has no limits.
GE HealthCare is proud to be among 2026 Fortune World’s Most Admired Companies™.
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About NSIA Banque Côte d’Ivoire
Filiale du Groupe panafricain NSIA, présent dans 12 pays et leader en Assurance et Banque, NSIA Banque CI fait partie du pôle bancaire dudit groupe fort de 3 banques et 3 succursales en Afrique de l’Ouest. Cotée à la Bourse Régionale des Valeurs Mobilières (BRVM), elle compte aujourd’hui plus de 80 agences en Côte d’Ivoire, dispose d’un parc de plus de 120 automates, ainsi que d’un bureau de représentation à Paris (France) dédié à la diaspora. Dès lors, elle se positionne comme le partenaire privilégié des Particuliers et des Entreprises. Elle contribue fortement au développement de l’économie ivoirienne par le financement de plusieurs projets ; ce qui lui a valu d’obtenir un second prix d’excellence, celui du « Meilleur établissement du secteur financier », décerné par l’État de Côte d’Ivoire, dans la catégorie « Domaine de la gestion économique et financière ». Elle compte plus de 1 000 employés.
About the IDA Private Sector Window
As part of the record $75 billion IDA18 replenishment, the World Bank Group created the $2.5 billion IDA Private Sector Window to catalyze private sector investment in the poorest and most fragile countries. Recognizing the key role of the private sector in achieving IDA18 objectives and the Sustainable Development Goals, the window provides concessional funds for co-investment alongside IFC and Multilateral Investment Guarantee Agency (MIGA) private investments. Concessional funds help to mitigate risk and reduce barriers, which unlocks and crowds in private investment in emerging markets. For more information, visit: https://ida.worldbank.org/psw.
About the Global Financing Facility
The Global Financing Facility (GFF) is a multi-stakeholder global partnership housed at the World Bank that is committed to ensuring all women, children and adolescents can survive and thrive. The GFF Trust Fund is currently supported by the Governments of Burkina Faso, Canada, Côte d'Ivoire, Denmark, Germany, Japan, the Netherlands, Norway, Qatar, and the United Kingdom; the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation; the Susan T. Buffett Foundation; the European Commission; Laerdal Global Health; MSD for Mothers, and the Rockefeller Foundation. The GFF supports 36 low and lower-middle income countries with catalytic financing and technical assistance to develop and implement prioritized national health plans and to maximize the use of domestic financing and external support in synergistic ways to scale up access to affordable, quality care and achieve better, more sustainable health results.
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GE Healthcare
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