The Bank Group and the International Conference of the Great Lakes Region (ICGLR) on Wednesday, September 10, 2008, signed a trust instrument for the administration and management of financial resources for the Special Fund for the Reconstruction and Development (SFRD) of the Great Lakes region on behalf of the eleven core member states. The SFRD was established in December 2006, within the framework of the implementation of the Pact on Security, Stability and Development in the Great Lakes Region.

The SFRD will be hosted and managed by the Bank Group in accordance with the Trust Instrument. It will be funded from mandatory and voluntary contributions by member states as well as voluntary contributions from donors, including Friends of the Great Lakes region. So far, four member states (Democratic Republic of Congo, Rwanda, Angola, and Zambia) have contributed US$1.6 million and several donors have made pledges. The objective of the Special Fund is to support the implementation of the ICGLR's Protocols and Programmes of Action selected in the priority areas of peace and security, democracy and good governance, economic development and regional integration, and humanitarian, social and environmental issues. The agreement was signed for the Bank by the Rwanda Field Office Resident Representative, Diko Mukete, and the CGLR Executive Secretary, Liberata Mulamula, on behalf of her organization. The signing ceremony was officiated by the Special Presidential Envoy to the Great Lakes Region, Richard Sezibera.