Mr. Fisseha Aberra, Director in charge of cooperation with international finance institutions at the finance and economic cooperation ministry is giving the keynote address.
The African Development Bank Group (AfDB) on Wednesday, 18 November 2015 launched Ethiopia's Development Effectiveness Review (DER) which explores its contribution to the country's development. The publication examines the progress Ethiopia has made on inclusive growth and explores some of the country's challenges. It tracks the performance of the Bank's portfolio against the goals and targets set out in the AfDB's Results Measurement Framework.
The launch was attended by 50 participants including senior government officials, representatives of development agencies, private sector and civil society organizations.
In his keynote address, Fisseha Aberra, a director in charge of cooperation with international finance institutions at the finance and economic cooperation ministry stated that the government welcomed the review and expressed the hope that both sides would continue to strive for greater development effectiveness. He noted that the DER for Ethiopia is an opportunity to jointly assess the impact of the various projects and programs accomplished in collaboration with the AfDB. Aberra stated that Ethiopia's effort and single minded commitment to transform its people's lives in the last two decades are bearing fruits. This would continue with the second Growth and transformation Plan (GTP II), which is consistent with the post-2015 SDG's agenda and a continuation of the policy objectives and priorities set out under GTP I".
Aberra also noted that the role and contribution of development partners such as the AfDB is instrumental, and underscored the Bank's focus on infrastructure and basic services as a testimony of the alignment of its country strategy to Ethiopia's medium-term development plans.
In her welcome remarks, the Resident Representative for Ethiopia, Josephine Ngure, stated that the Development Effectiveness Review provided a comprehensive report on the Bank's performance in the country and tracks how Bank operations have contributed to Ethiopia's development results. She indicated that the Bank has been an active player in Ethiopia for over 40 years, providing more than US $4 billion in development support. The African Development Bank is currently one of the key providers of development finance to Ethiopia, with total commitments amounting to more than US $ 1.7 billion, fully aligned on the country's Growth and Transformation Plan.
Victoria Chisala, Division Manager at the Bank's Quality Assurance and Results Department, provided a comprehensive overview of the report, highlighting the Bank's contribution to Ethiopia as well as the efficiency of the Bank in the management of its operations. She underlined the contribution of the Bank to Ethiopia's Development, in particular in the transport agriculture domains: "Between 2005 and 2013, we improved access to transport to 7.7 million people and our projects in agriculture benefited five million people. We were also active in microfinance where 1.9 million people benefited from our support."
In her closing remarks, Josephine Ngure thanked the Bank's development partners, agencies, the private sector and civil society for their cooperation with the AfDB and promised to continue working closely with them for the benefit of development in Ethiopia, through the 2016-2020 Country Strategy Program.
