Review of the performance of national development banks in Africa

National development banks are financial institutions that are fully or partially owned or controlled by a national Government and have been given an explicit legal mandate to achieve social and economic goals in a State, sector or market segment. National development banks are important entities, most of them having been incorporated by a State legislative instrument with the aim of channelling long-term finance in less developed financial markets and economic sectors that are perceived as being risky. These institutions have great potential to support the development goals of their respective countries, because they have unique advantages that allow them to be well connected to both the public sector and the private sector.