"We believe the ADB can, and must become the premier development institution in Africa, providing a strong voice for- and within- Africa, so that Africans can take their rightful place at the forefront of continental economic stewardship".
This is the core message of the Report of a 13-member Independent High Level Panel on the Bank Group, co-chaired by former Mozambican President Joachim Chissano and former Canadian Prime Minister, Paul Martin, and including the Nobel Laureate in economics, Joseph Stiglitz.
"With an elected African president, a strong balance sheet, and representation in all African countries, the ADB is well positioned to do this. There is a compelling case why the ADB must assume this role, and we present a realistic and credible plan to achieve it", Messrs Chissano and Martin noted in the foreword of the report, "Investing in Africa's Future, the ADB in the 21st Century", to be launched in Tunis on 22 January.
The Panel's plan calls for a greater focus on areas that contribute directly to increasing African productive capacity and economic integration: investing in infrastructure, building capable states, promoting the private sector and developing skills. The Panel also makes recommendations to enhance the Bank's delivery capacity, including better use of the Bank's financial strength and greater intellectual leadership on development issues in Africa.
The report comes on the heels of a record US$ 8.9 billion donor commitment to replenish the African Development Fund (ADF) --the concessional window of the AfDB Group, which is implementing wide-ranging reforms resulting in more tangible development results. The report is expected to enhance the Group's ambition to leverage more resources with a view to accomplishing its mandate and becoming the preferred channel of development support to Africa, a continent which is recording positive gains in many areas for the first time in decades.
The AfDB High Level Panel was established by President Donald Kaberuka as an independent advisory body to provide recommendations on the AfDB's strategic vision and on the operational strategies needed in the medium to long term.
High Level Panel Members
- Co-chairs: Joachim Chissano, former President of Mozambique, and Paul Martin, former Canadian Prime Minister
- Soumaila Cissé, President of the Commission of the West African Economic and Monetary Union (UEMOA);
- François-Xavier de Donnea, Minister of State and Member of the Belgian House of Representatives;
- Timothy Lankester, President of Corpus Christi College, Oxford University;
- Emmanuel Tumusiime-Mutebile, Governor of the Central Bank of Uganda;
- Poul Nielson, former European Commissioner for development and humanitarian aid;
- Wiseman Nkuhlu, Chairman of Pan-African Capital Holdings (Pty) Ltd, who previously served as Economic Advisor to the President of South Africa and as Chief Executive of the NEPAD Secretariat;
- Ndi Okereke-Onyiuke, Director General and Chief Executive Officer of the Nigerian Stock Exchange;
- Judith Rodin, President of the Rockefeller Foundation;
- Jean-Michel Severino, CEO of the French Development Agency (AFD);
- Joseph Stiglitz, Nobel Laureate in Economics; and
- Paul Yuma Morisho, former Secretary General of the AfDB.
CONTACT: Felix Njoku - Tel.: +216 71 26 12 - E-mail: f.njoku@afdb.org -- Geoffrey Manley - Tel.: +216 71 10 35 45 - Email: g.manley@afdb.org
