The president of the African Development Bank (AfDB), Akinwumi Adesina, defended this Tuesday a greater involvement of the bank in the definition of public policies of the African states in the inauguration speech for the second term.
“As we look to the future, let me assure you that the Bank will play a greater role in public policy dialogues with countries, we will support sustainable public debt management, increase 'green' growth and accelerate the promotion of jobs for young people on the continent, ”said Akinwumi Adesina.
“More than ever, we are going to expand partnerships - financial, knowledge and investment partnerships”, added the banker, defending “strong and inclusive partnerships with civil society, the academic world and academic centers of excellence”.
In the speech, Adesina thanked the unanimous vote that she received from 81 ADB member countries, considering that she was “placed on a collective pedestal” and promised renewed commitment, presenting new goals and areas of intervention by the bank in the follow-up of the impacts of the covid-19 pandemic. .
"The pandemic has changed everything globally, it has thrown Africa's growth backwards, which has lost gains and assured economic growth over the past decade, and so the recovery will be long and challenging," said Adesina.
Health, climate and environment are the areas chosen by the banker as the key to the reconstruction of the continent, which promised "increased attention in supporting quality health infrastructure".
Regarding the organization of the bank, Adesina argued that it must be “more agile and selective, to enhance what is already working and strengthen its own human and institutional capacity” and listed the institution, people, delivery and sustainability as the keywords- key to his mandate until 2025, promising “to build a stronger institution, strengthen human capacity, improve efficiency, deepen quality and impact, and maintain financial sustainability”.
Last week, Akinwumi Adesina got the support of all the bank's shareholders, at the end of an internal turbulence process due to complaints made by an anonymous group of employees about the banker's performance.
The governors of the AfDB are generally the ministers of Finance and Economy or the governors of the central banks of the 54 African countries that are members of the AfDB, to which are added 27 more non-regional members, among which is Portugal, which was represented at the meetings by the Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs and Cooperation, Teresa Ribeiro.
Recently, Adesina was the target of accusations made by an anonymous group of employees about favoring family members and assigning contacts.
The decision of the bank's ethics committee, which cleared the institution's president, was criticized by the United States of America, to which other non-regional members later joined, such as the Netherlands and the United Kingdom.
The commission then appointed a working group, which included former President of Ireland Mary Robinson, to validate the findings of the investigation, and the group concluded that Adesina should be absolved of all charges made by the anonymous group of officials and that the ethics committee analyzed the case in an impartial manner.
The next ADB Annual Meetings will be held in Accra, the capital of Ghana, from 24 to 28 May 2021.
The president of the African Development Bank (AfDB), Akinwumi Adesina, defended this Tuesday a greater involvement of the bank in the definition of public policies of the African states in the inauguration speech for the second term.
“As we look to the future, let me assure you that the Bank will play a greater role in public policy dialogues with countries, we will support sustainable public debt management, increase 'green' growth and accelerate the promotion of jobs for young people on the continent, ”said Akinwumi Adesina.
“More than ever, we are going to expand partnerships - financial, knowledge and investment partnerships”, added the banker, defending “strong and inclusive partnerships with civil society, the academic world and academic centers of excellence”.
In the speech, Adesina thanked the unanimous vote that she received from 81 ADB member countries, considering that she was “placed on a collective pedestal” and promised renewed commitment, presenting new goals and areas of intervention by the bank in the follow-up of the impacts of the covid-19 pandemic. .
"The pandemic has changed everything globally, it has thrown Africa's growth backwards, which has lost gains and assured economic growth over the past decade, and so the recovery will be long and challenging," said Adesina.
Health, climate and environment are the areas chosen by the banker as the key to the reconstruction of the continent, which promised "increased attention in supporting quality health infrastructure".
Regarding the organization of the bank, Adesina argued that it must be “more agile and selective, to enhance what is already working and strengthen its own human and institutional capacity” and listed the institution, people, delivery and sustainability as the keywords- key to his mandate until 2025, promising “to build a stronger institution, strengthen human capacity, improve efficiency, deepen quality and impact, and maintain financial sustainability”.
Last week, Akinwumi Adesina got the support of all the bank's shareholders, at the end of an internal turbulence process due to complaints made by an anonymous group of employees about the banker's performance.
The governors of the AfDB are generally the ministers of Finance and Economy or the governors of the central banks of the 54 African countries that are members of the AfDB, to which are added 27 more non-regional members, among which is Portugal, which was represented at the meetings by the Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs and Cooperation, Teresa Ribeiro.
Recently, Adesina was the target of accusations made by an anonymous group of employees about favoring family members and assigning contacts.
The decision of the bank's ethics committee, which cleared the institution's president, was criticized by the United States of America, to which other non-regional members later joined, such as the Netherlands and the United Kingdom.
The commission then appointed a working group, which included former President of Ireland Mary Robinson, to validate the findings of the investigation, and the group concluded that Adesina should be absolved of all charges made by the anonymous group of officials and that the ethics committee analyzed the case in an impartial manner.
The next ADB Annual Meetings will be held in Accra, the capital of Ghana, from 24 to 28 May 2021.