The African Development Bank (AfDB) Group, on Wednesday, May 22, 2014 in Kigali, signed its first post-revolution grant agreement with the Libyan authorities, to assist with leadership capacity building and democratic transition in the country. The grant amounts to US $3.5 million to strengthen the efficiency and effectiveness of the Libyan institutions to deliver democratic governance and sustainable economic and social development.
The agreement was co-signed by AfDB Operations Vice-President, Zondo Sakala and Libya's Deputy Finance Minister, on behalf of the country's Finance Minister, El Kilani Abdulkarim El Kilani.
The signing of the agreement marks the official launch of an AfDB pilot project entitled: "Leading the Way: Developing Leadership Capacity to Support Libya's Transition".
The project will support the transitional government and prepare conditions for a successful handover to the new post-election government, while running a pilot leadership training program on leadership capacity and expertise among executive level officials within the public and private sectors as well as the civil society. The project, which will be implemented by the Bank, is financed through the Deauville Partnerships' Middle East and North Africa (MENA) Transition Fund with counterpart funding of US $2 million from the Libyan Ministry of Planning.
The signing of the agreement comes only a week after the Board's endorsement of the 2014-2016 Re-engagement Note for Libya, approved on May 15. The note highlights governance, through state institutional capacity building, improved service delivery and creation of an enabling environment for private sector development, as the main objectives of the Bank's operations in Libya over the next two years. Aligned with the note's objectives, the Leading the Way project aims at building the state's capacity which, in turn, improves long-term institutional efficiency and service delivery, while supporting the country's challenging process of democratic transition.
The Bank has expanded its activities in Libya since 2012. Institutional capacity building and structural reforms within line ministries, strategic assistance to the country's key sovereign wealth funds, and creation of an enabling environment for private sector activity are among the key Bank activities in Libya.
