The African Development Bank (AfDB) has partnered with Japanese drone manufacturer Aerosense to advance sustainable infrastructure solutions in Africa. 

The parties signed a letter of intent on the sidelines of the ninth Tokyo International Conference on African Development, which was hosted in Yokohama, Japan, earlier this month.

The agreement formalises a relationship of mutual cooperation, assistance, information- and knowledge-sharing between the two institutions, exploring co-financing and deal opportunities, and appropriate coordination of actions between them and their respective teams, specifically concerning the promotion of sustainable infrastructure solutions in Africa.

Notably, the AfDB selected Aerosense’s drone solution following a call for proposals under the bank’s Sustainable Road Maintenance Programme for Africa, in June.

The AfDB will facilitate coordination with the public sector, lead awareness-raising campaigns, support capacity building for local partners and explore debt or equity financing support for projects involving drone deployment.

In turn, Aerosense will undertake demand studies for drone solutions in target African markets, including technical feasibility studies for drone solutions, while considering local geographical conditions.

The AfDB says the partnership marks a bold response to Africa’s growing infrastructure challenges and that, by partnering with Aerosense, the AfDB will not only promote efficient road management but also consider promoting other unique solutions such as disaster management, river control, agricultural sensing and medical equipment delivery.

Aerosense, in turn, looks forward to using Japanese technology to enhance quality of life in Africa and collaborating with the AfDB to build a better future.