The African Export-Import Bank (Afreximbank) has granted a credit facility of US$57 million to the Decameron New Horizon group to build a five-star hotel on the beach in Santa Maria, on Cabo Verde’s (Cape Verde’s) Sal Island, the bank said.

Cited by pan-African news agency Panapress, the bank’s chairman president, Jean-Louis Ekra, said the approval of the lending facility was part of a strategy to facilitate growth of the tourism sector in Member States under the Construction and Tourism-Linked Relay Financing Facility (Contour).

The first phase of this facility, of 30 million euros, will provide a payment guarantee to Ecobank Cabo Verde, the local administrative and financial agent of the construction work and allow the London-based Decameron New Horizon to finance the work as well as to buy equipment and furniture.

The second phase, of 27 million euros, will be granted to contractor Es-Ko Group, as capital for the purchase of equipment, furniture and additional accessories.

“This facility covers our support to the tourism sector in Cabo Verde of US$102 million,” said the chairman of Afreximbank, adding that this support was in line with a recent forecast by the World Tourism Organisation (WTO) that Cabo Verde could become one of the world’s top ten destinations in the next ten years.

The hotel complex building will have 544 rooms and will include a conference centre, seaside restaurants and other facilities. (macauhub/CV)