AfDB calls for more funding to spur Africa's development

The African Development Bank (AfDB) has called for increased funding to help accelerate development in Africa.

AfDB president Akinwumi Adesina said the bank is leading African Union in mobilizing domestic resources required to execute the bank's five developmental priorities dubbed the "High 5s," noting that financing gap to meet these needs are huge, some as large as 162 billion U.S. dollars a year.

"We re investing in the development and integration of capital markets, including the establishment of an African Domestic Bond Index and a 200-million-dollar African Domestic Bond Fund to deepen liquidity in local bond markets," he said in a statement released in Nairobi.

The High 5s are the accelerators for Africa to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals developed by AfDB. They were announced by Adesina in September 2015.

Adesina said that the bank had issued local currency bonds in 11 countries, including Kenya, South Africa, Egypt, Ghana, Nigeria, Botswana and Uganda.

"Using guarantees, we leverage over four times our equity resources. Our 87 million dollars investment in the NEPAD Infrastructure Project Preparation Facility has led to mobilization of about 8 billion dollars to support major regional infrastructure projects and programs," he said.

He added that the bank had rolled out an investment vehicle Africa50, for developing and financing infrastructure, which has so far raised 830 million dollars and plans to attract 3 billion dollars in the medium term.

Adesina said AfDB has the capacity to deliver more for Africa but needs substantial financing wind behind its sails.