Africa: Adesina Highlights AfDB Role in Realising Africa's Economic Opportunities

12 July 2022
Leadership (Abuja)
By Mark Itsibor

President of the African Development Bank (AfDB) Dr Akinwumi Adesina highlighted the role of the bank in supporting stability, growth and sustainable development on the African continent.

In his address to the Institute of International and European Affairs (IIEA), Ireland's leading international affairs think tank, Adesina spoke about some of the opportunities and challenges which Africa presently faces, including food security, debt sustainability, climate change, and the financing gap and what African Development Bank is doing to support and accelerate Africa's development.

He said that Africa's challenges can be overcome through enhanced crisis preparedness, development of quality healthcare systems and infrastructure projects to strengthen the continent's resilience.

Often described as "Africa's Optimist-in-Chief", AfDB president Dr Akinwumi A. Adesina is widely lauded for his visionary leadership and passion for Africa's transformation.

Dr Adesina was first elected President of the African Development Bank Group in 2015 and was unanimously re-elected for a second five-year term in 2020.

A former Nigerian minister for Agriculture, in 2017, he was conferred with the World Food Prize, also known as the "Nobel Prize for Agriculture".

With Dr Adesina at the helm, the African Development Bank Group achieved the highest capital increase since its establishment in 1964 and responded boldly and swiftly to the COVID-19 pandemic. Ireland joined the African Development Fund and the African Development Bank in 2020.

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