5 questions on AFD Group’s operations

No. Contrary to what you might think, AFD is above all a public bank that finances its operations through market borrowing under favorable conditions, backed by the financial stability of the French government, its sole shareholder.

Furthermore, 85% of our operations consist of granting loans to partner countries that are repaid with interest, thus requiring no funding from the government. Grants are only provided in the most critical situations to prevent crises and promote international stability, essential to ensuring prosperity and security.

Our operating costs, including the wages of our staff, are covered by the interest earned on our loans and the fees charged on grants to partner countries. In accordance with this model, 20% of our profits are paid to the French government in the form of dividends. 

AFD is an efficient and cost-effective public bank, with significant financial leverage: through €2 billion in budget appropriations from the French government last year, we increased our financing capacity sixfold, to over €12-13 billion each year. In addition, our co-financing allocation in the public and private sector reached €12 billion. This amounts to around €25 billion in financing each year. This means that for every €1 granted by the French government, €12 is ultimately invested in global interests, including climate action, biodiversity protection, public health, education and food security.

Our financing operations also create value and employment in France. Three quarters of the projects financed by AFD have involved at least one French organization. These investments have a positive impact for French businesses, generating economic spin-offs of €3 billion a year.

Emerging countries like India or Brazil are granted loans at market rates. These loans do not cost French taxpayers anything: they are financed by AFD Group through borrowings on international markets. Such loans are often used to finance climate action and biodiversity projects, helping to support France’s environmental diplomacy policy.

By the same token, no state funding is granted to projects in China. AFD Group operates in its role as a solidarity and sustainable investment bank. It does not grant “aid” to the country, but rather provides loans at general market rates and in full transparency.

AFD’s investments help broaden France’s economic and cultural influence, while leveraging French expertise and know-how. Between 2021 and 2023, AFD granted €385 million in loans to Chinese energy transition projects that benefited well-known French companies, like EDF, which is working on a project to decarbonize the district heating network in the city of Lingyuan. 

No. AFD Group also operates in French Overseas Territories and Departments, where it invested over €1 billion in 2024 to promote regional cooperation with their neighboring countries.

For example, New Caledonia, French Polynesia and Wallis and Futuna are beneficiaries of the Kiwa Initiative, launched in 2020, in collaboration with Australia, New Zealand, Canada and the European Union. This initiative has been allocated €78 million in grants (including €44 million from AFD) to help make Pacific island ecosystems, communities and economies more resilient to climate change.

AFD strives to ensure that every single euro invested has a positive impact on beneficiaries. For this reason, AFD Group applies a multi-level control system to help prevent any risk of corruption, fraud, money laundering, terrorist financing or anti-competitive practices that could tarnish its business or operations. This system meets the highest standards and is based on three key processes:

1. Project development with customers and partners (such as NGOs, companies and local authorities) to define objectives that meet the real needs of local communities.
2. Stringent fiduciary management based on audits, financial controls and anti-corruption mechanisms for all projects.
3. Operational monitoring of projects, through regular reporting by project managers and specialized consultants, as well as on-site supervision by our local teams. Evaluations are also conducted by independent consultants.

AFD has also set up a complaints mechanism so that any issues can be reported.

Yes. AFD operates within a structured and transparent governance framework, in accordance with multiple control mechanisms:

• A strategic framework: France’s Interministerial Committee for International Cooperation and Development (CICID) defines AFD’s priority areas for action, in partnership with the Ministry for Foreign Affairs, the Ministry of the Economy and Finance and the Ministry of the Interior.
• External controls: the French Parliament, the Cour des Comptes, the General Inspectorates and the French Prudential Supervision and Resolution Authority (ACPR) are responsible for supervising AFD’s financial and operational activities. AFD is also accountable to the French National Assembly and Senate, reporting on its operations 19 times in 2024. An evaluation committee, enshrined in the Law of August 4, 2021, is currently being set up to review public aid for development.
• Internal governance: AFD’s Board of Directors is made up of representatives of the French government, members of parliament and high-ranking individuals, ensuring that political, economic and social issues are addressed in a balanced way. In 2024, AFD’s governing bodies met 37 times.

Agence Française de Développement also regularly appears before the French National Assembly and Senate, reporting on its operations 19 times in 2024.

Each year, the AFD Group publishes hundreds of project evaluations, as well as a summary report assessing the impact and effectiveness of its projects. Its 2023 report provided an analysis of 124 projects implemented primarily in Africa between 2021 and 2022, focusing on key sectors such as health care, education and governance. Most of these evaluations are outsourced to independent consultants. They help shine a light on the results achieved and identify ways that AFD can improve its operations to support the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals.

According to aggregated impact indicators, AFD Group’s operations have had a positive impact on 120 million beneficiaries, by providing:

• Increased access to water and sanitation (32 million people);
• Access to new renewable and green energy facilities, with 130 MW of installed capacity (31 million people);
• Access to health care and education (31 million and 3.5 million people respectively);
• Support for 20,000 farms.