Latest news with #AmadouHott
Zawya
4 days ago
- Business
- Zawya
The race for AfDB president: How the bank elects its leader?
The African Development Bank (AfDB) will on Thursday vote in its new president for a five-year term. The winner will succeed Nigeria's Akinwumi Adesina, whose two five-year terms end in September. Here is what you need to know:Who are the candidates?Five experts are set to compete for the presidency of the AfDB, promising a tough contest. The candidates are Amadou Hott, former Senegalese Planning Minister; Samuel Munzele Maimbo, Zambian economist; Sidi Ould Tah, Mauritanian development banker; Abbas Mahamat Tolli, Chad's central banker; and Bajabulile Swazi Tshabalala, a South African corporate captain who previously served as Vice-President of the AfDB. In February, the Steering Committee of the Board of Governors on the Election of the President of the AfDB selected these five candidates from those who had submitted their candidacy. What has the race been like so far?The five candidates have offered an interesting rivalry. The Zambian and South African candidates have faced an especially awkward contest because both countries belong to the Southern Africa Development Community (SADC), a bloc which had previously endorsed the Zambian economist. In fact, Mr Maimbo has marketed himself as endorsed by both the SADC and the Common Market for Eastern and Southern Africa (Comesa), a trading bloc bringing together countries from eastern and southern Africa. South Africa would later endorse Ms Tshabalala to enter the race. If she wins, she will be the first woman to head the bank in its 60-year history. Meanwhile, the Mauritanian and Chadian candidates have mounted lacklustre campaigns, but have persisted, choosing to speak mostly at events where potential voters gather. Who are the past presidents?Although the AfDB's membership includes foreign nations such as the United States, the United Kingdom, Japan and South Korea, bringing the total number of members to 87, it exclusively lends to African countries. And only nationals of African countries can become president. The bank's 60-year history has seen nine presidents, including Dr Adesina. Others include:Donald Kaberuka (Rwanda) 2005 to 2015Omar Kabbaj (Morocco) 1995 to 2005Babacar Ndiaye (Senegal) 1985 to 1995Wila D. Mung'omba (Zambia) 1980 to 1985Goodall Gondwe (Malawi) 1979 to 1980Kwame Donkor Fordwor (Ghana) 1976 to 1979Abdelwahab Labidi (Tunisia) 1970 to 1976Mamoun Beheiry: The first president of the AfDB from Sudan, served from 1967 to 1970. What are the geopolitical considerations at the bank?Although only Africans can become president, the race for the bank's top leadership position can elicit a geopolitical contest. In the past, the US tried to prevent Dr Adesina from serving a second term, accusing him of misgovernance. However, the African continent rallied behind him. The current election could see a different kind of contest emerge, such as rivalry between Zambia and South Africa, or debate on whether the presidency should return to West Africa. How can one win the presidency?Representatives of member states — usually central bank governors or finance ministers — cast their votes. Unlike the African Union Commission, where a two-thirds majority is required, the AfDB election is won by obtaining more than half of the votes from African member countries and more than half of the votes from non-African member countries. Article 9 of the Rules of Procedure Governing the Election of the President states that a candidate is elected if he or she obtains 'at least 50.01 percent of the total votes of the regional (African) member countries and at least of 50.01 percent of the votes of all member countries, (both regional and non-regional) of the bank". This principle is known as the 'double majority vote'. What voting powers do members have?Not all members have the same voting power. According to the rules, the voting power of each member country, to be used in computing votes, is determined by the Board of Directors 'as at close of business on the last working day in the month immediately preceding the month during which the election of the president shall be held.'This computation is based on the shareholding. This means that only members who had paid up their capital subscriptions by end of April are taken into account in determining the voting powers. How do members vote?At the AfDB, the elections are conducted using an electronic voting system or physical paper ballots, in accordance with the Election Rules. This makes countries' voting patterns known to the public. This is in contrast to the African Union, where ballots are secret. If, after five rounds of balloting, no candidate has obtained the requisite double majority, the Board of Governors can deliberate and decide whether or not to proceed with voting for the president. If this happens, the election is postponed for up to a year, and the outgoing president or vice-president of the Bank from an African country is nominated. © Copyright 2022 Nation Media Group. All Rights Reserved. Provided by SyndiGate Media Inc. (
The Independent
5 days ago
- Business
- The Independent
African Development Bank elects top economist as president to face funding challenges
The African Development Bank elected Mauritanian economist Sidi Ould Tah as its next president on Thursday to steer the region's top development finance institution through difficult times amid funding cuts from the U.S. and other key partners. Tah, 60, was elected by the bank's board of governors, which includes finance ministers and central bank governors from its 81 regional and non-regional member countries. He will take over on Sept. 1 for a five-year term, succeeding Nigeria's Akinwumi Adesina, who is stepping down after two terms. The election took three rounds of voting to decide between the five candidates in the contest. Tah won with 76.18% of the vote, ahead of Zambia's Samuel Maimbo (with 20.26%), who is a vice-president of the World Bank, and former Senegalese economy minister Amadou Hott (3.55%). The vote came during the bank's annual meetings in Abidjan, Ivory Coast, where economic headwinds — from debt distress to climate shocks — have dominated discussions. Observers see Tah's leadership as pivotal in steering the institution through a period of rising pressure on African economies and tightening global development finance. 'The AfDB's role is now more critical than ever,' said Bismark Rewane, an economist and chief executive of Lagos-based Financial Derivatives Co. He called for 'African resilience" at a time when 'no one is going to pick the chestnut out of the fire' for African countries. "Africa has to look more inwards and be innovative in its thinking to thrive,' Rewane said. Since 2015, Tah has been managing the Arab Bank for Economic Development in Africa, based in Khartoum, Sudan. He has formerly held senior government roles in Mauritania, including minister of agriculture and minister of economy and rural development, and was an economic advisor to the president. —-
Associated Press
5 days ago
- Business
- Associated Press
African Development Bank elects top economist as president to face funding challenges
ABIDJAN, Ivory Coast (AP) — The African Development Bank elected Mauritanian economist Sidi Ould Tah as its next president on Thursday to steer the region's top development finance institution through difficult times amid funding cuts from the U.S. and other key partners. Tah, 60, was elected by the bank's board of governors, which includes finance ministers and central bank governors from its 81 regional and non-regional member countries. He will take over on Sept. 1 for a five-year term, succeeding Nigeria's Akinwumi Adesina, who is stepping down after two terms. The election took three rounds of voting to decide between the five candidates in the contest. Tah won with 76.18% of the vote, ahead of Zambia's Samuel Maimbo (with 20.26%), who is a vice-president of the World Bank, and former Senegalese economy minister Amadou Hott (3.55%). The vote came during the bank's annual meetings in Abidjan, Ivory Coast, where economic headwinds — from debt distress to climate shocks — have dominated discussions. Observers see Tah's leadership as pivotal in steering the institution through a period of rising pressure on African economies and tightening global development finance. 'The AfDB's role is now more critical than ever,' said Bismark Rewane, an economist and chief executive of Lagos-based Financial Derivatives Co. He called for 'African resilience' at a time when 'no one is going to pick the chestnut out of the fire' for African countries. 'Africa has to look more inwards and be innovative in its thinking to thrive,' Rewane said. Since 2015, Tah has been managing the Arab Bank for Economic Development in Africa, based in Khartoum, Sudan. He has formerly held senior government roles in Mauritania, including minister of agriculture and minister of economy and rural development, and was an economic advisor to the president. —- Adebayo reported from Abuja, Nigeria.
Zawya
5 days ago
- Business
- Zawya
Amadou Hott outlines his vision for African economic transformation at the African Development Bank's Annual Meetings
At the African Development Bank's (AfDB) annual meeting in Abidjan this week, presidential candidate Amadou Hott ( al unveiled his comprehensive vision for Africa's economic transformation, emphasizing regional integration, private sector engagement, and affordable financing as the cornerstones of his agenda in several media engagements with African and international outlets. Hott, who served as AfDB Vice President for Energy, Green Growth and Climate Change and as Senegal's Minister of Economy, Planning and Cooperation, stressed the urgent need to accelerate Africa's transformation through bold yet pragmatic reforms. He highlighted the importance of regional integration and improved connectivity to foster economic growth, calling for enhanced trade infrastructure and mechanisms to unlock the continent's full potential. 'We are 1.4 billion people, but we are scattered across many countries, each with its own rules and regulations. To attract massive investment and create jobs, we must work on our integration and improve intra-African trade,' he said in an interview with CNBC ( A central pillar of Hott's agenda is the promotion of private sector engagement as a key driver of job creation and economic dynamism. He pledged to triple the Bank's private sector operations over the next decade, including the establishment of a dedicated vice presidency for private sector development. This new structure aims to streamline collaboration with businesses of all sizes, from SMEs to large conglomerates, and to expand tailored credit lines and guarantees for African banks. Addressing the challenge of Africa's high cost of capital, Hott called for urgent measures to reduce borrowing costs by improving credit ratings and lowering risk premiums. He argued that affordable financing is essential to accelerate development projects and support both public and private sector growth. In an interview with Bloomberg ( Hott dived into how he intends to leverage Africa's domestic wealth. 'We cannot afford to wait for others to lead us forward. Africa's future will be built not just on external support, but on our own wealth, our talent, and our ability to structure opportunities at scale. We must do it ourselves, and the Bank must be at the center of that transformation,' he said. Hott's vision also prioritizes education and skills development. In an interview with leading Nigerian newspaper Business Day ( Hott shared how his own story inspired his vision. 'I do not believe Africa's future should be built on exporting its talent out of necessity. Emigration must be a choice, not a development strategy. When our youth leave because they cannot find opportunity at home, that is not success—it is a sign that we must do more,' he explained. Positioning himself as a unifying leader, Hott emphasized on his intentions to foster an environment of institutional agility and increased impact and streamline the Bank's operations for speed, scale and impact. He further emphasized on the importance of collaboration among regional and non-regional stakeholders, development banks, the private sector, and African entrepreneurs and offered that the Bank serves as the bridge builder among all these stakeholders. He called for collective action to address the continent's pressing challenges, including youth unemployment, poverty, and inequality. 'My passion is Africa. I have always worked to mobilize resources, build partnerships, and deliver impact, not just for my country, but for the entire continent,' Hott affirmed. As Africa faces declining aid, geopolitical uncertainties, and the imperative for job creation, Amadou Hott's vision for the AfDB signals a transformative path toward self-reliance, dynamic growth, and shared prosperity. Distributed by APO Group on behalf of Amadou Hott, Candidate for the Presidency of the African Development Bank Group.
Malay Mail
6 days ago
- Business
- Malay Mail
From green growth to gender firsts: Who are the candidates to succeed Nigeria's Adesina at the African Development Bank?
ABIDJAN, May 29 — Five candidates are in the running to succeed Nigeria's Akinwumi Adesina as president of the African Development Bank (AfDB). They are: Amadou Hott (Senegal) Hott was Senegal's economy minister from 2019 to 2022 under the presidency of Macky Sall and until September last year was Adesina's special envoy for green infrastructure in Africa. But he is not necessarily a natural successor, as the position usually goes to a candidate from another region and the candidacy of Mauritania's Sidi Ould Tah will split the west African vote. In his pitch for the leadership, Hott, 52, has called for 'a more inclusive, integrated and resilient Africa', positioning himself in particular as a supporter of AfCFTA, the African Continental Free Trade Area. He is also in favour of deepening relations with the private sector. Hott also wants to quicken the pace of investment in sustainable energy infrastructure using Africa's vast renewable resources. Samuel Munzele Maimbo (Zambia) Maimbo, 52, was most recently vice president for budget, performance review and strategic planning at the World Bank. He has also been chief of staff to World Bank presidents David Malpass and Ajay Banga. He will also have to contend with a split regional vote during the election, as South Africa -- one of the biggest AfDB's contributors -- is also fielding a candidate. But his experience at the World Bank could help him secure US support, which carries weight in the vote. Maimbo, who highlights 30 years of experience in development and finance, wants the AfDB to play 'a leadership role' in supporting the many countries strangled by debt. Having grown up on a farm on the outskirts of Lusaka, he emphasises the importance of agricultural mechanisation and the development of the agro-industry. 'Africa needs significantly higher rates of growth to successfully navigate today's development challenges and capture tomorrow's opportunities,' he said in his mission statement. Sidi Ould Tah (Mauritania) Tah, who has headed the Arab Bank for Economic Development (BADEA) for 10 years, was the last candidate to declare. Several north African Arab states are members of the AfDB and if elected, his experience at BADEA could be a bridge with sub-Saharan Africa. He said in his mission statement that he had transformed BADEA into 'one of the best capitalised and most highly-rated DFIs' (development finance institutions). He has vowed to strengthen regional financial institutions, assert Africa's financial independence on global markets, use population growth as a development lever and build climate change-resistent infrastructure. Tah, 60, is a former economy minister in Mauritania. Abbas Mahamat Tolli (Chad) Central Africa has never had a president of the AfDB but Tolli, a 53-year-old Chadian, could be its first. The former governor of the Bank of Central African States has served as a finance and infrastructure minister and is also proposing a transformative vision. He wants to achieve food sovereignty through sustainable agricultural investments, speed up financing for essential infrastructure, improve governance, promote renewable energies, and develop domestic financial markets. To achieve this, the AfDB, he said, must strengthen its support for agricultural productivity, further mobilise the private sector, and help states better fight tax evasion, among other measures. Success will mean the emergence of robust and competitive industrial value chains, he said. Bajabulile Swazi Tshabalala (South Africa) The AfDB has only ever been headed by men but Tshabalala aims to change that. The 58-year-old South African was until the end of last year a vice president at the bank and could emerge as a continuity candidate. 'Africa is at an inflection point. It's time for bold leadership that turns vision into action. I'm ready to lead the AfDB towards a more integrated, resilient, and prosperous continent,' she said last month. Tshabalala wants to accelerate infrastructure development, boost private sector growth and make the AfDB more efficient. She argues that the bank must look beyond public funding to 'smart finance'. South Africa backs her candidacy but southern African unity could be split, as it had previously rallied behind Zambia's Maimbo.
