For immediate release

Tanzania-based Tanga Urban Water Supply and Sanitation Authority (Tanga UWASA) lists its pioneering green bond on the Luxembourg Stock Exchange (LuxSE). The bond will finance access to clean and affordable water in Tanzania.

LUXEMBOURG, 17 OCTOBER 2024 – During a visit by a Tanzanian delegation to Luxembourg which included representatives of the country’s Ministry of Finance, Ministry of Water and other public authorities, the Luxembourg Stock Exchange (LuxSE) and Tanga UWASA celebrated the listing of the Tanzania-based water authority’s pioneering green bond on LuxSE. The bond is displayed on the Luxembourg Green Exchange (LGX), the world’s reference platform for sustainable securities.

This historic achievement was made possible through the critical support and coordination of the UN Capital Development Fund (UNCDF), which played a pivotal role as the lead development finance advisor and technical partner to Tanga UWASA throughout the entire bond issuance process. UNCDF's support included project development, raising national awareness, creating and financing the issuance roadmap, and developing innovative risk mitigation strategies tailored to the Tanzanian market. This project serves as a model for UNCDF's efforts to develop sustainable finance mechanisms across East Africa and beyond.

Accessing global investors

The TZS 53 billion bond, equivalent to EUR 17.8 million, is the first green bond to be issued by a public institution in East Africa. It has a 10-year maturity and aims to finance water infrastructure projects and environmental conservation initiatives.

“As we appreciate that LuxSE is a place where ideas meet capital, become reality and create real impact; we aspire for our future Tanzanian issuers – both public and private sector – to access Luxembourg markets, get connected with a pool of global investors, raise capital, and drive growth. In other words, we would want to see more subnational, corporate, and even sovereign debt products listed in Luxembourg. We are developing a pipeline of transactions to facilitate this positive trend of sustainability investments; and remain committed to improving our country’s enabling environment to attract foreign investors and private sector,” said Dr. Mwigulu Lameck Nchemba, Hon Minister of Finance for Tanzania.

Transforming access to water in Tanzania

The bond, which was open to both domestic and international investors, was met with great interest when issued earlier this year, and twice oversubscribed. Around 65% of the funding came from domestic investors while 35% came from international investors. This is seen as an indication of the growing interest of the international investor community in sustainable investment opportunities in Tanzania.

The issuance highlights the important role subnational entities such as Tanga UWASA can play in unlocking capital market financing in local currency to fund sustainable development projects in Tanzania. The proceeds of the bond will go towards propelling thousands of households' access to safe and affordable water in the East African country and protecting the natural resources of the nation's famous Zigi river, among other key environmental projects.

The Managing Director of Tanga UWASA, Eng. Geofrey Hilly, emphasised that,

“the listing of our green bond on LuxSE, underscores the utility’s commitment to advancing sustainable water services to our customers while remain a pioneer and an excellent model for replication by other public entities. We are thankful to all our investors and partners who supported our transaction, and we reaffirm our assurance in meeting applicable standards including our investment obligations.”

Mobilising capital for sustainable development

With 44,000+ listed securities, LuxSE is the world’s leading exchange for the listing of international bonds, serving 1,800 issuers across 100 countries. Since establishing LGX in 2016, LuxSE has focused on advancing the sustainable finance agenda across the world. Over the past few years, LuxSE has established cooperation agreements with selected exchanges in Africa and worked with market participants to help foster sustainable finance initiatives on the continent.

“Access to safe and affordable water and sanitation is a key factor in achieving the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals, and the very foundation of health and safety. We are delighted to mark the listing of this pioneering green bond from Tanga UWASA on our exchange, it is a great illustration of the role that international capital markets play in mobilising financing to secure access to essential services for everyone,” said Julie Becker, CEO of LuxSE.

Collaborating for sustainability

Tanga UWASA, which was established in the historic city of Tanga in 1998, plays a key role in supplying sufficient, clean and safe water to Tanga City, Muheza and Pangani Townships residents and safely collecting and disposing of sewage in compliance with both environmental and health standards.

The bond issuance, which is hoped to pave the way for other such issuances in the region, is the result of close collaboration between the subnational entity, the country’s Finance and Water Ministries, its Capital Market and Securities Authority and the UNCDF, among other key players.

"The successful issuance and cross-listing of the Tanga Water Bond demonstrates UNCDF's commitment to promoting sustainable finance and developing domestic capital markets in Tanzania," said Peter Malika, Head of UNCDF Tanzania.

"Our team has worked tirelessly to coordinate the National Municipal and Subnational Bond Stakeholders Taskforce, which was instrumental in launching this first national pilot. This bond issuance is part of UNCDF's ongoing commitment to unlock domestic capital for sustainable development in Tanzania. Moreover, UNCDF's work has contributed to improving the regulatory environment for subnational bond issuances in Tanzania, paving the way for future similar initiatives."

To find out more about Tanga UWASA’s green bond, go to https://www.luxse.com/security/TZ1996105296/410686

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ABOUT THE LUXEMBOURG STOCK EXCHANGE

The Luxembourg Stock Exchange (LuxSE) is the gateway to access international investors. With more than 44,000 listed securities, including 40,000 debt instruments, from 1,800 issuers in 100 countries, LuxSE is one of the world’s leading exchanges for the listing of international debt securities and offers a unique and integrated service offering covering listing, trading and information services.

In 2016, LuxSE launched the Luxembourg Green Exchange (LGX) and became the first exchange in the world to operate a platform dedicated entirely to sustainable securities. LGX has become a meeting place for issuers of sustainable products and impact-conscious investors, and encompasses more than 2,100 green, social, sustainability and sustainability-linked bonds from 330 issuers in 60 countries, raising a total of more than EUR 1 trillion for sustainable investment projects around the world. For more information, visit luxse.com.

ABOUT TANGA UWASA

Tanga Urban Water Supply and Sanitation Authority (Tanga UWASA) is an autonomous utility wholly owned by the Government of the United Republic of Tanzania. The utility operates under the Ministry of Water and regulated by the Energy and Water Utilities Regulatory Authority (EWURA). It is also an ISO 9001 certified entity under the Quality Management System (QMS) since June 2007, whereas its recent recertification under the same standard will last to June 2025.

Tanga UWASA has demonstrated outstanding performance since its inception in 1998 through implementation of various developmental and investment plans. As a leading water utility in the country, Tanga UWASA aspires to be among the developing world’s most ambitious, innovative, and most forward-thinking utility to ensure that all people entrusted to it have access to clean water and sanitation services.

For media inquiries, please contact:

Julie Vichi, LuxSE Press Office julie.vichi@luxse.com

+352 621 196 495

Devotha C. Mayala, Communication & Public Relations Unit devotha.mayala@tangauwasa.go.tz

+255 765 970 079

ABOUT THE UNITED NATIONS CAPITAL DEVELOPMENT FUND (UNCDF)

UNCDF mobilizes and catalyzes an increase in capital flows for SDG impactful investments to Member States, especially Least Developed Countries, contributing to sustainable economic growth and equitable prosperity.

In partnership with UN entities and development partners, UNCDF delivers scalable, blended finance solutions to drive systemic change, pave the way for commercial finance, and contribute to the SDGs. We support market development by enabling entities to access finance in high-risk environments by deploying financial instruments, mechanisms and advisory.

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For more information, please contact:

Cheryl Haines, UNCDF

cheryl.haines@undp.org

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