Race for AfDB Leadership Intensifies

The contest to lead the African Development Bank (AfDB) is gaining momentum as candidates from Zambia, Senegal, and Mauritania pledge to accelerate Africa’s development.

Zambia’s Samuel Maimbo, a former senior World Bank official, formally launched his campaign, joining Senegal’s Amadou Hott, special envoy for the AfDB’s Alliance for Green Infrastructure in Africa, and Mauritania’s Sidi Ould Tah, former head of the Arab Bank for Economic Development in Africa.

Current AfDB President Akinwumi Adesina, who has led the bank since 2015, will step down in October. Under his tenure, the AfDB championed agriculture investment and, in partnership with the World Bank, recently launched an US$8 billion initiative to provide electricity to 300 million Africans.

Maimbo, backed by the Southern African Development Community (SADC) and COMESA, emphasized Africa’s need for bold leadership, citing his role in securing a US$90 billion financing package under the International Development Association. He pledged to boost Africa’s share of global trade, strengthen regional markets, modernize infrastructure and agriculture, and expand energy access.

“Africa needs significantly higher growth rates to navigate today’s challenges and seize tomorrow’s opportunities,” Maimbo stated. “I’m ready to support governments in achieving their goals.”

South Africa initially backed its own candidate, Bajabulile Tshabalala, but later endorsed Maimbo as the SADC representative. Tanzania’s Frannie Leautier, once considered a contender, may have stepped aside in favor of regional consensus.

The AfDB, the only African financial institution with a AAA credit rating, will elect its new president on May 29 at its headquarters in Abidjan, Côte d’Ivoire (Ivory Coast).