Mozambique President praises Adesina’s decade of transformative leadership at AfDB

Mozambique’s President Daniel Chapo has hailed Dr. Akinwumi Adesina’s 10-year tenure as President of the African Development Bank Group (AfDB) as a period of “transforming ambition into outcomes,” crediting him with improving millions of lives across Africa.

Speaking on Wednesday at the opening of the Africa50 General Shareholders Meeting in Maputo, Chapo commended Adesina’s dual role as AfDB President and Board Chair of Africa50, an investment platform established to bridge the continent’s infrastructure funding gap.

“Your legacy is not just institutional but impacting the lives of Africans,” Chapo said. “We thank you and wish you the most success for what the future has in store.”

Africa50 CEO Alain Ebobissé also paid tribute to Adesina, citing the success of the Alliance for Green Infrastructure in Africa (AGIA), which aims to mobilize up to $10 billion in green infrastructure investments.

During a fireside chat moderated by Nozipho Mbanjwa-Tshabalala, Adesina reflected on his tenure, urging Africa to embrace bold, collective visions and turn them into tangible results, particularly in critical infrastructure like power.

“Economies that don’t have power can never grow… you are not going to industrialize and be competitive in the dark,” he said, challenging misconceptions about Africa’s investment risks.

Citing Moody’s data, Adesina noted that infrastructure investments in Africa have recorded cumulative losses of just 1.9% over 15 years, lower than in other regions. “Africa is not as risky as it is perceived,” he said.

Adesina also stressed the importance of harnessing Africa’s 420 million young people as an economic asset, warning that failure to create youth-based wealth could undermine future tax revenues.

Under his leadership, the AfDB increased its capital base from $93 billion in 2015 to $318 billion in 2024, enabling its “High 5s” initiatives to benefit 565 million Africans in areas such as energy access, food security, industrialization, regional integration, and quality of life. The Bank also maintained its AAA credit rating and was ranked the world’s best multilateral financing institution for two consecutive years.

Africa50, meanwhile, expanded to $1.4 billion in managed assets, with projects spanning 32 countries and sectors including energy, transport, digital infrastructure, healthcare, and education.

Adesina, who steps down on 1 September 2025, said his focus was never on personal accolades. “My legacy is an Africa strong enough to deliver finance for its transformation at scale. We have come of age, and we can handle issues by ourselves and deliver,” he said.