Yemisi Izuora
Africa is promoting a new reform strategy that will accelerate fund mobilization that will help its economic development.
The African Development Bank Group’s five-day Annual Meetings in Brazzaville, concluded with the Board of Governors strongly endorsing the Bank’s Four Cardinal Points strategic vision.
The governors called for acceleration of the reform of Africa’s financial architecture in order to mobilize large-scale resources for Africa’s development within the framework of the New African Financial Architecture for Development (NAFAD). They also expressed their support for institutional reforms undertaken by Ould Tah to make the Bank more agile, more flexible, and closer to beneficiaries across Africa.
“The Board of Governors approved and encouraged the President of the African Development Bank Group, Dr. Sidi Ould Tah, to implement his vision, ‘the Four Cardinal Points,’ to strengthen Africa’s capacity for action and influence in an increasingly fragmented world,” said the Minister of Economy, Planning, Statistics and Forecasting of the Republic of the Congo, Ludovic Ngatsé, Chair of the Bank Group’s Boards of Governors, during the closing ceremony.
“I would like to warmly welcome the clear, frank and overwhelming support we received,” said Dr. Ould Tah during these Meetings.
In a compelling address, he recalled that it is “bold political decisions that will make the difference on the ground.” “I want to say this,” he added with the utmost clarity, “I have listened to you, and I have heard you.” The President emphasized that what was built in Brazzaville “beyond the figures” was “deeper.” “We have set in motion a dynamic of action, a dynamic of transformation, a dynamic of integration,” Ould Tah stressed.
More than 4,000 participants from over 81 countries took part in the Bank Group’s Annual Meetings, held under the theme: “Mobilizing large-scale resources for financing Africa’s development in a fragmented world.”
The Annual Meetings, the first organized under Dr. Ould Tah’s presidency since he took office on 1st September 2025, featured a presidential panel bringing together the President of the Republic of the Congo, Denis Sassou-N’Guesso, his Central African counterpart Faustin-Archange Touadéra and Gabon’s Brice Clotaire Oligui Nguema, together with Bank President Sidi Ould Tah.
The Annual Meetings, the Bank Group’s main statutory gatherings, were also marked by several major announcements. Angola announced a contribution of €6.5 million to the 17th replenishment of the African Development Fund (ADF). This brings to 25 the number of African countries financing ADF-17, with a total exceeding USD 190 million. The unprecedented commitment of African countries to financing ADF-17 marks a turning point toward shared responsibility and reinforces African ownership within the development finance architecture and the economic future of the continent.
The Meetings were also marked by more than USD 3 billion in commitments to the Congo Basin Blue Fund aimed at supporting 17 African countries in environmental conservation and sustainable development.
Numerous agreements were signed as part of the operationalization of the Bank’s new Four Cardinal Points strategic vision, as well as during a high-level meeting on the Integrated Aviation Transformation Programme in Africa (IATP) and the African Facility for Medicines and Medical Equipment (AMEF).
Japan announced USD 10 million in funding for the implementation of AMEF.
As the Annual Meetings kicked off with the Africa Day celebrations on Monday 25 May, the President of the Republic of the Congo, Denis Sassou N’Guesso announced the abolition of visas for all African citizens.
“As from the first of January 2027, nationals of all African countries will have visa-free access and will no longer need a visa to come to Congo,” the Congolese leader said and urged countries to deepen regional integration
Welcoming the landmark decision, Bank President Ould Tah described it as “a courageous and deeply pan-African decision.”
Congolese Prime Minister Anatole Collinet Makosso hailed the fact that the Annual Meetings were held in person despite the Ebola outbreak in neighbouring Democratic Republic of Congo and Uganda a few days before the event.
A joint mobilization of the Congolese government, the World Health Organisation’s regional office which has its headquarters in Brazzaville, the Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention, the African Development Bank, put in place detailed safety measures to address the threat of the outbreak. To date, no Ebola case has been reported or detected in the Republic of the Congo since the outbreak was declared by the WHO on 17 May. During his closing remarks, Minister Ngatsé, the Chairman of the Bank Group’s Boards of Governors, stated:
“For the Republic of the Congo, hosting these Meetings has been an exceptional international showcase, but above all a unique opportunity to align its national priorities with continental dynamics”.
Bank Group President Ould Tah reaffirmed his ambition to make the African Development Bank a “solutions bank,” more agile, closer to people, and fully engaged in the continent’s economic transformation.
At the press conference following the closing ceremony, Ould Tah said the African Development Bank will never be burdened by bureaucracy and will remain firmly connected to the field. “There is no risk of disconnect from the field,” stressing that the Bank will work with national banks and regional banks to provide support to Small and Medium Enterprises, youth, and women.
The Bank Group president emphasized that Africa must mobilize more domestic resources, guard against fragmentation, and transform its raw materials in order to create value, growth, and above all jobs for African youth and women.
President Ould Tah also paid tribute to civil society organisation, philanthropists, and the African diaspora. “Your role is irreplaceable,” he acknowledged, “The Bank will be your leading partner,” Ould Tah assured.