Accra — The Governors' Consultative Committee (GCC) of the Board of Governors of the African Development Bank held its fifth meeting during 17-18 February in Accra, Ghana under the chairmanship of Mr. Seydou Bouda, Governor for Burkina Faso and Chairman of the Boards of Governors. In line with the decision taken at its fourth meeting, the GCC met to review developments in the host country of the Bank and to provide final guidance to the Boards of Directors on the relocation of the Bank's operations to its Temporary Relocation Agency (TRA) in Tunis.
2. Following the adoption of the agenda, the Governor for Ghana, Mr. Yaw Osafo-Maafo welcomed Governors to Accra for the second time,. The Governor noted that the Bank's Boards of Directors had activated Phase IV of the Bank's Emergency Plan, and re-iterated, as per the consensus reached at the December 2002 meeting, that the Bank's headquarters remains in Abidjan. He stressed that any action taken in this regard should only be seen as temporary. The Governor urged the GCC, in its deliberations, to protect at all times the interest of the Bank.
3. The President of the Bank Group, Mr. Omar Kabbaj, then made introductory remarks in which he reviewed recent developments in the host country and the actions that the Bank had taken, following the activation of the Bank's Phase IV by the Boards of Directors. He also highlighted the main features of the temporary relocation proposal that had been submitted by the Boards of Directors for the guidance of the GCC. He informed the GCC that in line with its Emergency Plan, the Bank had sent approximately 400 staff members to Paris and Tunis for business continuity and to maintain essential functions of the Bank. The remaining internationally-recruited staff had been evacuated to their home countries. In this connection, he thanked the Ivorian authorities for their assistance during the evacuation exercise. He also commended the Boards of Directors and the staff for the calm and professional manner in which the evacuation was carried out and the keen sense of responsibility shown in making the difficult decisions.
4. The President stressed however that the staff complement sent to Paris and Tunis would only enable the Bank to undertake essential business functions and to service existing projects. The Bank would not be able to carry out any new lending operations nor would it be in a position to launch new initiatives. He further argued that although parts of the temporary relocation plan had been overtaken by events, the rationale for the proposal had been strengthened by recent developments. It was therefore essential to implement its basic provisions and, in particular, the relocation of about 600 additional staff members to the TRA to halt the erosion of the Bank's institutional capacity and to enable it to deliver on its development mandate.
5. The Governor for Côte d'Ivoire presented an overview of developments in the host country since the last meeting of the GCC. He also briefed the GCC on the additional security measures that his government had taken to enhance the security of Bank staff and to protect its facilities and property. The Governor also noted that efforts had been made to improve relations between the Bank and the host country, including regular meetings of a newly-created committee.
6. With respect to developments in the host country, the Governor informed the GCC that the major initiatives taken by ECOWAS and France had resulted in the signing of a peace accord and the appointment of a new consensus Prime Minister, who was in the process of holding consultations to establish a new government. And while the Governor acknowledged that the Bank had implemented its Phase IV in line with its Emergency Plan -- and which had been endorsed by the GCC -- there were no developments in the host country that would warrant implementing the proposal of the Boards of Directors for the temporary relocation of the Bank's operations.
7. The GCC considered the document on the temporary relocation of the Bank's operations to Tunis. It agreed that as per its declaration at its fourth meeting, the Bank's Headquarters remains in Abidjan and that any action taken with respect to the relocation of operations should only be viewed as temporary.
8. The GCC provided the following final guidance to the Boards of Directors on the temporary relocation of the Bank's operations. The GCC recommended that the Bank should temporarily relocate its operations to its TRA and take as many staff as necessary to enable it to resume, as soon as possible, its operations in its regional member countries and to provide support to regional initiatives such as NEPAD. The GCC stressed the importance of the Bank reconstituting itself in a short time to enable it to deliver on its development mandate. In this regard, the GCC was guided by the advice given by the General Counsel that such action was within the purview of the Boards of Directors and that the assignment of staff to any duty station was within the powers of the President of the Bank. The Governor for Côte d'Ivoire opposed the recommendations; the Governors for Morocco and Libya abstained from expressing their views on the matter; and the Governor for South Africa expressed his reservation on the scale and costs of the proposed relocation exercise.
9. The GCC reviewed and endorsed the draft resolution to be submitted to the Boards of Governors, for its approval by postal ballot, for the temporary relocation of the Board of Directors to Tunis. The GCC also endorsed that the draft resolution for the transfer of Executive Directors and their staff to Tunis during the implementation of the Emergency Plan be submitted to the Boards of Governors for approval on a lapse of time basis. The GCC noted that pending such approval, the Boards of Directors would hold particular meetings in Tunis during the emergency period, to provide guidance and oversight to the management of the Bank, in conformity with the legal instruments of the Bank. The Governor for South Africa abstained and the Governor for Côte d'Ivoire expressed his reservation on this matter.
10. The GCC advised that Management and Boards of Directors should examine the budget for the relocation exercise with a view to reducing the costs, to the extent possible. It also advised that efforts should be made to avoid investments that may be viewed as permanent in nature, such as the purchase of buildings. The GCC noted that the President, using the powers invested in him by the Financial Regulations of the Bank in matters of high urgency and with the concurrence of the Boards of Directors, had authorized expenses related to the implementation of the Emergency Plan and will report to the Boards of Directors on those expenditures.
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11. The GCC noted that Management had identified additional office space to permit the Bank to resume its key development operations within the next two to three months. In this regard, it urged Management and the Boards of Directors to do all in their powers to restore the institutional capacity of the Bank to enable it to deliver on its development mandate in the shortest possible time.
12. The GCC re-iterated that the temporary relocation of the operations of the Bank would be reviewed not later than 180 days and every six months thereafter to assess the conditions that would permit the Bank's operations to return to Abidjan. The GCC noted that a final decision would have to be based on a judgement regarding the re-establishment of those conditions necessary for the smooth operations of the Bank and the return of staff.
13. With respect to the decentralization of the operations of the Bank, the GCC welcomed Management's undertaking to launch a study in order to come up with proposals by the end of 2003.
14. The GCC thanked the Ivorian authorities for implementing enhanced security measures for the staff and property of the Bank and for assisting in the evacuation of staff, following the declaration of Phase IV.
15. The GCC thanked H.E. President John A. Kufuor, the Government and people of Ghana for hosting the meeting and for the warm hospitality extended to all participants.
