Presidential election at the African Development Bank
The 60th annual meeting of the African Development Bank Group (AfDB Group) began on Monday in Abidjan, Côte d’Ivoire. This year, the focus is on the presidential election, which will take place tomorrow, Thursday. The election will determine the successor to Akinwumi Adesina, who has held the position since 2015 and is not eligible to run again after two terms. One female candidate and four male candidates, all with extensive experience in development finance, government work, or international cooperation, are vying for the post.
South African Swazi Bajabulile Tshabalala, who served as the AfDB’s First Vice President until last October, is the only woman in the race. Her campaign focuses on structural reforms for the institution. Other candidates include former Senegalese Minister of Economy Amadou Hott, who advocates for financial independence and greater mobilization of domestic revenues, such as taxes, as well as Zambian economist Dr. Samuel Munzele Maimbo, currently on leave from his position as Vice President for Budget and Strategic Planning at the World Bank. His focus is on a continent-wide approach that proposes, for example, the integration of data and the simplification of regulations to facilitate trade and financing between African countries. Sidi Ould Tah from Mauritania, Director of the Arab Bank for Economic Development in Africa, emphasizes the mobilization of a broader spectrum of capital, the formalization of informal economic sectors, and the reform of the AfDB’s current financing system. Among the candidates, he is also considered best positioned to engage Islamic banks and Gulf states as potential partners. Abbas Mahamat Tolli from Chad, who has previously served as Finance Minister, Central Bank Governor, and President of the Bank of Central African States, is also running for the top position at Africa’s largest development bank. His campaign centers on strengthening administration and thereby improving efficiency.
The presidential election will be conducted in a secret ballot, according to the Bank’s regulations, with all 81 member states eligible to vote, including 54 African and 27 non-regional countries. Germany, represented by the Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ), is a shareholder in the AfDB, holding 4.1% of the shares, making it the third-largest non-African shareholder after the United States (6.09%) and Japan (5.54%). Germany’s votes will be cast by Parliamentary State Secretary and AfDB Governor for Germany, Bärbel Kofler. Votes are weighted according to each country’s shareholding. Several countries made last-minute payments prior to the election, slightly altering their voting weights: Libya increased its share by 0.2 percentage points compared to the previous month, while Ghana recorded a gain of 0.11 percentage points. A double majority is required to win the elections with at least 50.01% of the total votes and at least 50.01% of the votes from the African member states. If no candidate achieves this majority, the candidate with the fewest votes is eliminated and the election goes to the next round. The election can therefore extend over several rounds until one candidate has achieved a majority.
The new President of the African Development Bank (AfDB) will take office in September, succeeding Akinwumi Adesina. Even before the new term begins, key challenges are already emerging: the US government has announced plans to cut its contributions to both the AfDB and the African Development Fund, a part of the Bank Group, by 555 million US dollars. The incoming leadership will face the task of persuading the US to resume its payments while also identifying new funding sources, whether among African member states or non-regional members such as China, the Gulf States, or the United Arab Emirates.
EU investment in trade corridor between Chad and Cameroon
Over the weekend, various media reported on the European Union’s (EU) investment of 40 million euros in the modernisation of the Douala-N’Djamena trade corridor between Cameroon and Chad. The route connects N’Djamena, the capital of the landlocked country of Chad, with the Cameroonian harbour city of Douala on the Gulf of Guinea and plays a central role in the region’s trade. A central sub-project is the construction of the 620 metre-long Longone Bridge, which connects the Cameroonian border town of Yagoua in northern Cameroon with the town of Bongor in southern Chad and was officially opened last month. The EU contributed €40 million to the €113 million project and also provided technical expertise through the French construction company Razel. The EU is providing further support in the form of technical studies, project management and capacity building measures to improve the management of the border posts. The construction of the bridge will reduce transport times for goods and passengers who previously had to cross the border river by boat or take long detours, thereby also lowering transport costs.
As part of the corridor modernisation, which covers a total of 1,800 km, the EU is also funding the repair of 229 kilometres of the 596-kilometre section between N’Djamena, Koutere and Moundou. The project also includes the construction of a new 72 metre long bridge in Moulkou, four weighing stations and six rest areas. Technical support measures are also planned, including analyses of gender-specific risks and opportunities, road safety and climate resilience. In Cameroon, more than 1,500 kilometres of roads and 950 kilometres of rail network are also to be financed and expanded. In addition to the 40 million euros from the EU, €291 million have also been earmarked for the project under the guarantee mechanism of the International Finance Cooperation (IFC), which was developed jointly with the EU. The aim is to use these guarantees to reduce investment risks in order to facilitate more private investment. As the EU’s Director General for International Partnerships, Koen Doens, emphasised in an interview with Africanews last Friday, the modernisation of the corridor is intended to optimise the effectiveness and efficiency of goods transport routes in Central Africa. In addition, the EU is supporting local small and medium-sized enterprises in the agricultural sector in order to create additional employment prospects.
The project is part of the European Union’s Global Gateway Initiative, which aims to support sustainable infrastructure projects totalling 300 billion euros worldwide by 2027. Of this, 150 billion euros are earmarked for projects on the African continent. The initiative is seen as Europe’s response to China’s Belt and Road Initiative, through which China has been investing heavily in the development of African trade routes by financing infrastructure projects for years. At the most recent meeting of EU and African Union (AU) foreign ministers in Brussels, the continuation of cooperation within the framework of the Global Gateway was also emphasised. In the process, the groundwork was laid for the 7th AU-EU Summit, which is scheduled to take place in Africa later this year. The summit will focus on the strategic direction of the future AU-EU partnership, which is celebrating its 25th anniversary this year.
In other news
The Africa Day was celebrated worldwide over the weekend – a day that commemorates the founding of the Organisation of African Unity (OAU), the forerunner of the African Union (AU), in 1963 on 25 May. The AU celebrated Africa Day on Saturday with an official ceremony at its headquarters in Addis Ababa. This year’s celebrations were held under the motto ‘Justice for Africans and People of African Descent through Reparations’. They honoured the historical significance of the day and, in addition to speeches, also provided the space for cultural performances and exhibitions. The focus was on demands for justice regarding colonial injustices and for reparations in connection with slavery and colonialism. Other topics at this year’s events, which took place in many countries, were demographic development, the continent’s economic potential and the role of women and young people in social change. In his speech as Chair of the AU Commission, Mahmoud Ali Youssouf emphasised Africa’s growing importance on the global stage and called for courageous action for a just future.