The Board of Directors of the African Development Bank (AfDB) has affirmed cognizance of the strategic role of sustainable procurement and governance and has approved the Policy paper entitled: Mutual Reliance for procurement in joint co-financed public sector operations between African Development Bank and European Investment Bank.
The objective of the Mutual Reliance Agreement (MRA), called Procedural framework, between the Bank and the European Investment Bank (EIB) is to delegate procurement related tasks in project preparation, implementation and monitoring to the maximum possible extent to the institution that is subsequently assuming the responsibility as Lead financier. Within the overall framework, and recognizing differences across regions, it is envisaged that AfDB and EIB will play a balanced role as Lead financiers.
This MRA on procurement policies and procedures will facilitate joint co-financing of investment projects and thus responds to the objective of the Bank Group's Ten Year Strategy aimed to expand the sources of financing for Africa, including through co-financing arrangements with partner development institutions.
AfDB and EIB share the same public procurement principles of economy, efficiency, transparency and accountability and have been actively participating in the MDBs' procurement harmonization efforts within the MDBs' Heads of Procurement group. The MRA has been developed for procurement and integrity issues under public sector projects that are co-financed on a joint basis.
Presenting the document to the Board, the Bank Group Officer in Charge of the Fiduciary Services and Inspection Department, Eric Yoboué underscored the relevance of the agreement, noting that it would particularly contribute to a better division of labor between financiers and would also increase the coherence and development impact of joint financing operations and activities to the benefit of the Bank's Regional Member Countries. "The MRA will contribute to the success of larger-scale development projects and programmes, in particular in situations where a single financier is not able to manage the project or work, due to limited financial, risk bearing and/or project management capacity," he said, adding that the agreement would create substantial synergies to leverage efficiency gains from development cooperation at the operational level.
The EIB is the long-term lending institution that has made long-term finance available for sound investment in order to contribute towards EU policy goals. With the African Development Bank, EIB has co-financed private sector projects to support sustainable economic development and social progress in AfDB's regional member countries, thus contributing to poverty reduction in Africa.
