Active Development AidData Chinese Aid

China Eximbank provides RMB 567 million government concessional loan for Telecommunications Network Modernization Project (Linked to Record ID#53292)

¥567K RMB

Funder	Export-Import Bank of China (China Eximbank)
Recipient Organization	Government of Comoros
Country	Comoros
Start Date	Dec 11, 2018
End Date	Dec 25, 2029
Duration	4,032 days
Number of Grantees	1
Roles	Recipient
Data Source	AidData Chinese Aid
Grant ID	`87222`

Grant Description

China Eximbank provides RMB 567 million government concessional loan for Telecommunications Network Modernization Project On December 11, 2018, China Eximbank and the Government of Comoros signed an RMB 567,000,000 ($85,826,411.40) government concessional loan (GCL) agreement for the Telecommunications Network Modernization Project.

📋 Loan / Grant Terms

📅 Maturity30 years

⏳ Grace Period5 years

💹 Interest Rate1%

The Government of Comoros on-lent the proceeds of the loan (GCL) to La Société Comorienne de Télécommunication (Comores Télécom), which is a state-owned telecommunication operator in Comoros.

Comores Télécom is expected to use the proceeds of the loan to finance an $81 million commercial contract that it signed with Huawei Technologies Co., Ltd. in 2017.

The purpose of the project is to renovate and modernize the infrastructure Comores Télécom and expand the ‘Huri network’ and cover the entire country. More specifically, it involves the extension of a fiber to the home (FTTH) network to 57 additional sites.

The project also seeks to build upon the achievements of the China Eximbank-financed National Fiber Optic Backbone Transmission Network Project (captured via Record ID#53292). Huawei Technologies Co., Ltd. is the contractor responsible for project implementation.

On March 22, 2022, Huawei Technologies Co., Ltd. and Comores Télécom officially launched the Nafassi FTTH to provide household access to to high-speed Internet, television and landline telephone services (via submarine cables).

📋 Staff Comments

This project is also known as the Network Modernization Project, Phase 2 of the National Fiber Optic Backbone Transmission Network Project, and the Fixed-Mobile Convergence (FMC) Project. The French project title is Phase 2 of Projet Cable Optique or Le Projet Eassy de câble marin à fibre optique. The Chinese project title is 援科摩罗固定移动融合网络现代化项目 and FMC项目.
The World Bank’s Debtor Reporting System (DRS) identifies the face value of the loan as $85,826,411.
It is possible that the GCL was first issued to the Government of Comoros, which in turn on-lent the proceeds of the loan to Comores Télécom. This issue warrants further investigation.
In the database of Chinese loan commitments that SAIS-CARI released in 2020 and re-released in 2021, the borrowing terms of this loan are not identified. AidData relies on the borrowing terms of the loan that are recorded by IMF Country Report No. 19/272.

📚 Sources & References

Chinese Loans to Africa - Comoros
Union of the Comoros : 2019 Article IV Consultation-Staff Report; Press Release
中科两国政府签署关于中国向科摩罗提供优惠贷款的框架协议
Cooperation Sino-Comorienne / La Chine au secours des Comoros Telecom
Sino-Comorian cooperation / A 32 billion loan to operationalize fiber optics
DRS Official Commitments from China through 2020
Quotidien Indépendant d’Informations Générales
REQUEST FOR DISBURSEMENT UNDER THE RAPID CREDIT FACILITY AND PURCHASE UNDER THE RAPID FINANCING INSTRUMENT—PRESS RELEASE; STAFF REPORT; AND STATEMENT BY THE EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR FOR THE UNION OF COMOROS
SAIS-CARI Loans China
DEMANDE DE PROGRAMME DE RÉFÉRENCE — COMMUNIQUÉ DE PRESSE ET RAPPORT DES SERVICES DU FMI
Retrospective Economie / 2019 debute sans budget pour l'Etat
Badge Regulation des Telecommunications - QUELLES STRATEGIES DE COMORES TELECOM FACE A L’OUVERTURE DU MARCHE DES TELECOMMUNICATIONS A LA CONCURRENCE ?
LES RÉALISATIONS
Les Comores lancent une fibre sous-marine avec le soutien de Huawei
驻科摩罗大使何彦军出席科摩罗现代化光纤业务联合发布会
驻科摩罗大使出席科现代化光纤业务联合发布会
Article IV report 2016
Union of the Comoros : 2018 Article IV Consultation-Press Release; Staff Report; and Statement by the Executive Director for the Union of the Comoros
Debt Publletin June 2022
Joint World Bank-IMF Debt Sustainability Analysis
Public Debt Bulletin 2023 Loan applications and disbursements are still being received and processed as the projects continue to evolve. Ongoing monitoring and evaluation are in place to ensure project continuity.