Ghana’s President Nana Akufo-Addo has backed calls for more resources for the African Development Bank Group to accelerate its transformative role across the continent.
President Akufo-Addo received the African Development Bank Group president, Dr. Akinwumi Adesina, at State House in Accra on Wednesday.
President Akufo-Addo expressed strong support for a significant replenishment of the African Development Fund, the African Development Bank Group’s concessional financing arm. He noted that the work of the Fund has become even more critical in the wake of the Covid-19 pandemic, climate change, and most recently, the Russia-Ukraine war.
The Ghanian president said: “We must all focus on how best we can expand the capital base of the African Development Bank and the African Development Fund to give them a greater significance in terms of being able to raise money on the global bond market… This way, we can play the lead role in financing our development.”
He commended Adesina for what he said was his dynamism as the head of the African Development Bank and his advocacy on the global stage for Africa’s development.
Adesina is visiting Ghana ahead of the African Development Bank Group’s 2022 Annual Meetings in Accra from 23-27 May. Accompanying him to the Ghanaian capital on this preparatory mission are the Bank Group’s Secretary-General, Vincent Nmehielle; Acting Chief Economist and Vice President for Economic Governance and Knowledge Management Kevin Urama; Director-General in the Office of the President Alex Mubiru; Executive Director representing The Gambia, Ghana, Liberia, Sierra Leone and Sudan, Kenyeh Barlay; and the Bank Group’s Ghana Country Manager Eyerusalem Fasika.
