SME Finance Forum member, Overseas Private Investment Corporation (OPIC) President and Chief Executive Officer Ray W. Washburne traveled to Zambia where he toured Zambia’s first utility scale solar power facility which is being supported by a $13 million OPIC loan and a $26 million loan from the International Finance Corporation to Neoen and Arizona-based First Solar, the joint developers of the project. The project supports the mission of Power Africa. The 54MW photovoltaic power plant will be operated in partnership with the Industrial Development Corporation, the Zambian public investment fund.

He says this will be done through his organisations Connect Africa Initiative and could extend to women driven entrepreneurship initiatives. Earlier in July, OPIC announced its Connect Africa investment initiative targeting $1 billion for projects that support transportation, communications, and value chains in Africa over the next three years.