Gabon – Preparatory Studies for the Establishment of the Mandji Island Industrial Zone (AFDB-P-GA-BZ0-001)

Regions
  • Africa
Geographic location where the impacts of the investment may be experienced.
Countries
  • Gabon
Geographic location where the impacts of the investment may be experienced.
Specific Location
Mandji Island
Whenever identified, the area within countries where the impacts of the investment may be experienced. Exact locations of projects may not be identified fully or at all in project documents. Please review updated project documents and community-led assessments.
Financial Institutions
  • African Development Bank (AFDB)
International, regional and national development finance institutions. Many of these banks have a public interest mission, such as poverty reduction.
Project Status
Approved
Stage of the project cycle. Stages vary by development bank and can include: pending, approval, implementation, and closed or completed.
Bank Risk Rating
A
Environmental and social categorization assessed by the development bank as a measure of the planned project’s environmental and social impacts. A higher risk rating may require more due diligence to limit or avoid harm to people and the environment. For example, "A" or "B" are risk categories where "A" represents the highest amount of risk. Results will include projects that specifically recorded a rating, all other projects are marked ‘U’ for "Undisclosed."
Voting Date
Nov 11, 2025
Date when project documentation and funding is reviewed by the Board for consideration and approval. Some development banks will state a "board date" or "decision date." When funding approval is obtained, the legal documents are accepted and signed, the implementation phase begins.
Borrower
Government of Gabon
A public entity (government or state-owned) provided with funds or financial support to manage and/or implement a project.
Sectors
  • Industry and Trade
  • Technical Cooperation
The service or industry focus of the investment. A project can have several sectors.
Investment Type(s)
Advisory Services
The categories of the bank investment: loan, grant, guarantee, technical assistance, advisory services, equity and fund.
Investment Amount (USD)
$ 0.54 million
Value listed on project documents at time of disclosure. If necessary, this amount is converted to USD ($) on the date of disclosure. Please review updated project documents for more information.
Project Cost (USD)
$ 0.63 million
Value listed on project documents at time of disclosure. If necessary, this amount is converted to USD ($) on the date of disclosure. Please review updated project documents for more information.
Primary Source

Original disclosure @ AFDB website

Updated in EWS Feb 17, 2026

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Project Description
If provided by the financial institution, the Early Warning System Team writes a short summary describing the purported development objective of the project and project components. Review the complete project documentation for a detailed description.

As stated by the AfDB, the ultimate objective of the project is to stimulate structural transformation through local processing of raw materials and the upgrading of enterprises. The initiation of an industrial hub on Mandji Island and the strengthening of the industrial support ecosystem are expected, among other outcomes, to:

(i) attract private investment, enhance value addition in selected sustainable priority value chains, and diversify exports;
(ii) accelerate local processing of raw materials and improve the quality of locally manufactured products;
(iii) promote youth and women’s entrepreneurship and foster the emergence of national champions; and
(iv) create sustainable jobs for young people and women while improving the living standards of local communities.

The specific objective of this technical assistance project is to conduct the required studies and prepare project documents that will enable the mobilization of financial resources and partners to ensure the establishment of the Mandji Island industrial zone and a business incubator.

The proposed project forms part of the implementation of the Gabon Emerging Strategic Plan and the National Import Substitution Strategy through the rollout of the “Gabon Industry” pillar, which aims to enhance the valorisation of the country’s raw material resources by increasing value added and promoting local subcontracting. Financing this project through the PRI grant will help ensure high-quality project preparation for the investment initiative envisaged by the Government, support the sustainability of the establishment of the Mandji Island industrial zone, and ensure that risks and impacts are adequately assessed, mitigation measures clearly identified, and implementation costs properly estimated. Through the feasibility studies of the industrial zone and the business incubator, the project will also contribute to promoting private-sector-oriented solutions and creating investment opportunities.

It will further enable the Bank to support infrastructure financing while simultaneously assisting key stakeholders, notably the Government and interested private sector actors wishing to locate in the zone. In order to achieve the overarching objective of stimulating structural transformation through local processing of raw materials and enterprise upgrading, the project will be structured around two components: the first will focus on maturing the Mandji Island industrial zone project to drive structural change through local value addition, while the second will propose an incubator model to support enterprises in priority value chains through capacity upgrading and business development support.

The total cost of the project amounts to UA 470,000 and will be jointly financed by the Bank (UA 400,000) and the Government of the Republic of Gabon (UA 70,000 in in-kind contribution).

Investment Description
Here you can find a list of individual development financial institutions that finance the project.

Contact Information
This section aims to support the local communities and local CSO to get to know which stakeholders are involved in a project with their roles and responsibilities. If available, there may be a complaint office for the respective bank which operates independently to receive and determine violations in policy and practice. Independent Accountability Mechanisms receive and respond to complaints. Most Independent Accountability Mechanisms offer two functions for addressing complaints: dispute resolution and compliance review.

AfDB Team Leader:

Namalguebzanga Christian Kafando
Email: n.kafando@afdb.org 

ACCESS TO INFORMATION

You can submit an information request for project information at: https://www.afdb.org/en/disclosure-and-access-to-information/request-for-documents. Under the AfDBÕs Disclosure and Access to Information policy, if you feel the Bank has omitted to publish information or your request for information is unreasonably denied, you can file an appeal at https://www.afdb.org/en/disclosure-and-access-to-information/appeals-process.

ACCOUNTABILITY MECHANISM OF AfDB

The Independent Review Mechanism (IRM), which is administered by the Compliance Review and Mediation Unit (CRMU), is the independent complaint mechanism and fact-finding body for people who have been or are likely to be adversely affected by an African Development Bank (AfDB)-financed project. If you submit a complaint to the IRM, it may assist you by either seeking to address your problems by facilitating a dispute resolution dialogue between you and those implementing the project and/or investigating whether the AfDB complied with its policies to prevent environmental and social harms. You can submit a complaint electronically by emailing crmuinfo@afdb.org, b.kargougou@afdb.org, b.fall@afdb.org, and/or s.toure@afdb.org. You can learn more about the IRM and how to file a complaint at: https://www.afdb.org/en/independent-review-mechanism/

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