Dr Akinwumi Adesina, the President of African Development Bank (AfDB) has been re-elected to serve for a second of five years. The election conducted electronically on Thursday during closing ceremony of the virtual Annual General Meeting (AGM) of the bank. A source said that all the delegates unanimously voted for Adesina but details had not been made known officially. Adesina’s reelection at the helm of the 56-year-old bank was formalised during the AGM because he was the sole candidate.
The AfDB boss had faced with corruption allegations and subsequently cleared by ethics committee of the bank, bureau of board of directors while the Independent Review Panel also exonerated him. The Independent Review Panel was constituted by the Bureau of Governors of the Bank, following a complaint by the United States, to review the process by which two previous organs of the Bank – the Ethics Committee of the Board, and the Bureau of the Board of Governors had previously cleared Adesina. The three-member Independent Review Panel was headed by Mary Robinson, who is a former President of the Republic of Ireland, a former United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights.
Meanwhile at the opening ceremony of the AGM on Wednesday, Adesina presented himself officially to Governors and other stakeholders for reelection. “At this Annual Meetings, I offer myself to you, our Governors, for your consideration for election for a second term, as President. I do so, with humility, with a strong sense of duty and commitment and a call to serve Africa and our Bank, selflessly, to the very best of my God-given abilities” he said. The Chairperson of the Board of Governors of the Bank, Mrs. Niale Kaba, announced his reelection after the election conducted by virtually on Thursday. Adesina was first elected as President of the Bank on May 28, 2015 and will begin his new term of another five years on September 1.
Kaba said she was delighted that the Board of Governors had re-elected Adesina for a second term in office as President. “As shareholders, we strongly support the Bank and will give him all the necessary support to carry forward and implement his compelling vision for the Bank over the next five years” she said. Adesina’s first term focused on the bold new agenda for the Bank Group based on five development priorities known as the High 5s. The High 5s are Light up and Power Africa, Feed Africa, Industrialise Africa, Integrate Africa, and Improve the Quality of Life for the People of Africa.
The AfDB president had on Wednesday said the Bank achieved impactful results on the lives of 335 million Africans, including 18 million people with access to electricity, 141 million benefited from improved agricultural technologies for food security. According to him, 15 million people have access to finance from private investments, 101 million people provided with access to improved transport and 60 million people gained access to water and sanitation. The Bank has maintained its AAA-ratings by all major global credit rating agencies for five years in a row while the Board of Governors of the Bank Group approved a 125 per cent increase in the General Capital of the Bank. The capital rose from 93 billion dollars to 208 billion dollars, the largest in the history of the Bank.
