Regional integration fundamental

While much of Africa has avoided the worst effects of the recession, we face significant risks and uncertainty.

The impact of the global turbulence though varying, from region to region, has been a major setback and a threat to our common achievement to date.

But, at the same time; much of Africa has demonstrated remarkable resilience.

The reform programmes and economic policies put in place by many African nations over the last decade have minimised pre-existing vulnerabilities, providing that surprising degree of resilience.

It is right to conclude that the African Development Fund (ADF) has contributed to that resilience.

By frontloading supportive action, the Fund and its partners provided additional capacity to resist the external shocks.

We are proud of the role which ADF played at this critical time while avoiding strategic drift.

Now, as the global economy begins to show fragile signs of recovery, preventing slippages and consolidating the gains in Africa is a call which we must respond.

Our aim must be to see countries progress significantly in prosperity creation and graduate, as Cape Verde has done, to less dependence on aid.

And that means acting on sources of growth, and growth drivers such as our core areas of operations.

The ADB has put forward what I believe to be a credible proposal as to how it intends to do so: Our projected pipeline for ADF-12 already has 336 national and multinational projects valued at UA12.35 billion ($18 billion).

This demand is fuelled mainly by the infrastructure gaps, particularly energy, the needs for regional integration, investment in climate change adaptation. All priorities of ADF-11 and ADF-12.

Secondly, much has been said about our institution’s capacity – on which there is much to do always.

Nonetheless, representatives of RMCs present here will confirm, the AfDB is becoming a lender and partner of choice both in normal and crisis times.

Our selectivity and focus has enabled us to deepen our understanding of the sectors and countries we operate in and we are more and more able to demonstrate results with each dollar.