The Caribbean Development Bank’s Charter provides for the establishment and administration of special funds exclusively for servicing high-priority development loans. Additionally, this funding facility offers loans with longer maturities and grace periods, as well as lower interest rates than those applied in the Bank’s ordinary operations.
The Special Development Fund (SDF/the  Fund) was established in 1970 with financial support from several contributors. SDF offered an assortment of terms and conditions fixed by the Fund’s various contributors. These differing terms and conditions created a number of complexities and inefficiencies in the Fund’s operation, which prompted the decision to set up a fund with a uniform set of rules.