Azalai Mezz (IFC-49019)

Countries
  • Mali
Geographic location where the impacts of the investment may be experienced.
Specific Location
Bamako
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
  • International Finance Corporation (IFC)
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
B
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
Dec 20, 2024
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
Groupe Azalai Hotels SA
A public entity (government or state-owned) provided with funds or financial support to manage and/or implement a project.
Sectors
  • Industry and Trade
The service or industry focus of the investment. A project can have several sectors.
Investment Type(s)
Loan
The categories of the bank investment: loan, grant, guarantee, technical assistance, advisory services, equity and fund.
Investment Amount (USD)
$ 5.28 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)
$ 86.27 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.
Currency conversion note:
Bank reported 82.7
Converted using 2024-12-20 exchange rate.
Bank Documents
Primary Source

Original disclosure @ IFC website

Updated in EWS Mar 16, 2025

Disclosed by Bank Nov 16, 2024

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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.

Azalai Group (Azalai or the Group) is a regional player in the hospitality sector which owns and operates 9 upscale and mid-scale business hotels in in West Africa. To fill the gap in the provision of region wide upscale branded hotels that meet international standards, Azalai aims to expand in capacity and geographically through: (i) the renovation and expansion of Azalai Hotel Independance (AHI) in Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso and (ii) the refinancing of a portion of the recently completed Azalai Hotel Dakar (AHD), in Dakar, Senegal (iii) the renovation of the Azalai Grand Hotel in Bamako, Mali (the Project). According to the Bank’s website, the Project is expected to be supported by the IDA PSW Blended Finance Facility (BFF) as described in the Blended Finance Section.   

Early Warning System Project Analysis
For a project with severe or irreversible impacts to local community and natural resources, the Early Warning System Team may conduct a thorough analysis regarding its potential impacts to human and environmental rights.

This is a Category B project as per the IFC's Policy on Environment and Social Sustainability (2012). The proposed project will have limited adverse E&S impacts that are few, site specific, largely reversible and readily addressed through existing mitigation measures. Key E&S risks and impacts of this investment include; (i) implementation of the E&S management system and organizational capacity at Group and hotel level; (ii) assurance of fair and safe labor and working conditions, including freedom of association and an internal grievance mechanism with specific focus on gender-based violence and sexual harassment; (iii) emergency preparedness and response and life, fire and food safety, and (iv) stakeholder engagement and external grievance mechanism.

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

The total Project cost for the three hotels is estimated at €82.7million. The total proposed IFC investment is a €10million Corporate C loan in the Holding that is comprised of €5 million from IFC own account and €5 million from IDA PSW BFF. The remaining balance will be provided by the shareholders and other lenders to AHD, AHI and GHB

IFC's Investment as Approved by the Board: Loan 5.28 million (USD)

Private Actors Description
A Private Actor is a non-governmental body or entity that is the borrower or client of a development project, which can include corporations, private equity and banks. This describes the private actors and their roles in relation to the project, when private actor information is disclosed or has been further researched.

Azalai Hotel SA, the Mali-based holding company (the Holding) of the Azalai Group is a private owned company whose majority shareholder is Mr. Mossadeck Bally, a Malian entrepreneur. Other shareholders include: (i) PE funds, (iii) private investors; and (iv) Azalai staff.

AHD and AHI and SGH, under which GHB is held, are three subsidiaries of the Holding.

Private Actor 1 Private Actor 1 Role Private Actor 1 Sector Relation Private Actor 2 Private Actor 2 Role Private Actor 2 Sector
- - - - Groupe Azalai Hotels SA Client -

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.

Groupe Azalai Hotels SA
Mr. Mohamed Ag
Group Chief Executive Officer
+ 223 76 40 29 60
mohamed.ag@azalaihotels.com
Groupe Azalai Hotels SA, Quartier Du Fleuve, BP 104, Bamako, Mali
www.azalai.com

ACCESS TO INFORMATION

You can submit a request for information disclosure at: https://disclosures.ifc.org/#/inquiries

If you believe that your request for information from IFC has been unreasonably denied, or that this Policy has been interpreted incorrectly, you can submit a complaint at the link above to IFC's Access to Information Policy Advisor, who reports directly to IFC's Executive Vice President.

ACCOUNTABILITY MECHANISM OF IFC/MIGA

The Compliance Advisor Ombudsman (CAO) is the independent complaint mechanism and fact-finding body for people who believe they are likely to be, or have been, adversely affected by an IFC or MIGA- financed project. If you submit a complaint to the CAO, they may assist you in resolving a dispute with the company and/or investigate to assess whether the IFC is following its own policies and procedures for preventing harm to people or the environment. If you want to submit a complaint electronically, you can email the CAO at CAO@worldbankgroup.org You can learn more about the CAO and how to file a complaint at http://www.cao-ombudsman.org

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