Addis Ababa — Rwandan Finance Minister Donald Kaberuka beat Nigeria's Olabisi Ogunjobi in a run-off election yesterday to become the next president of the African Development Bank (AfDB), Reuters reported yesterday.

Kaberuka will replace Moroccan Omar Kabbaj, whose second and final term ends soon.

"I will work to help any African country facing financial problems. I will strive for further growth and economic development across Africa," Kaberuka told reporters after shaking hands with the defeated Nigerian who is currently AfDB vice-president.

"Donald Kaberuka won 78.82 per cent of the total votes plus a 68.20 per cent of the regional votes," Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, Chairman of the bank's board, told reporters.

The run-off vote took place in Tunis, where the bank has had temporary headquarters since early 2003 because of civil strife in Cote d'Ivoire.

It followed a string of ballots in Abuja in May, which failed to produce a clear winner between the two leading candidates.

AfDB, established 40 years ago to help Africa's then newly independent states to build and grow economies, now has a capital base of more than $32 billion.

Its board comprises 51 African nations and 25 non-regional members - Western governments and donor agencies.

According to a Reuters report filed from Tunis, to win the election, a candidate needed a majority of the total votes plus a majority of regional African votes.

Regional members have 60 per cent of the vote, while non-regional members have 40 per cent.