AfDB 2011 Partnerships Forum to Focus On Regional Integration

18 February 2011
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African Development Bank (Abidjan)
press release

The African Development Bank (AfDB) will hold its 2011 annual Partnerships Forum on 28-29 April 2011, at Hotel Ramada Plaza-Gammarth in Tunis, Tunisia, with a focus on regional integration. Participants at the forum will include representatives of bilateral and multilateral donors, the private sector, foundations and knowledge institutions.

The Partnerships and Cooperation Unit (ORRU) head, Kazumi Larhed, says that the choice of regional integration as the forum's theme is relevant to Africa's most pressing development challenges and in line with the Bank's strategic focus areas. "The Forum will be an important opportunity to deepen our dialogue on the Bank's Regional Integration Strategy with our development partners all around the world. We also look forward to our discussions on the AfDB's Partnerships Strategy for 2011-2015," she adds.

Partnering on Regional Integration

The Bank's performance on regional integration has improved in recent years, with regional operations investments accounting for 14% of total Bank group lending between 2008-2010, with a focus on infrastructure including transport (40.3%), energy (7.4%) and information and communication technology (2.7%). Under the 12th cycle of the African Development Fund (ADF) for 2011-13, 20% of the concessional resources are allocated to support regional operations. The Forum will seek to enhance dialogue on the sector and especially explore further innovative approaches to resources mobilization and improved service delivery for beneficiaries.

The Bank's partnerships portfolio has considerably grown in diversity and complexity, largely due to its enhanced institutional credibility and visibility as Africa's premier development finance institution. A growing number of diverse partners are willing to renew and intensify their cooperation with the institution, notably in the areas of trust funds, co-financing, technical cooperation, secondment, staff exchanges, special initiatives, and joint analytical work and knowledge engagements.

Contacts

Sanogo Bakary

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