Browsing: AfDB

• Africa Development Bank (AfDB) has launched the Africa Fertilizer Financing Mechanisms (AFFM) to boost purchase of the critical farm input across the continent.
• The Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) warns that Africa is spending less on agriculture development than the rest of the world.
• AFFM has already secured $10.15 million in new funding from the Norwegian Agency for Development Cooperation (NORAD).

Shortage of fertilizer in Africa continues as the war between its main suppliers Russia and Ukraine enters the second year. To increase food productivity and security, African countries need increased access to fertilizer, nut until this dilemma is resolved, food security is off the table.

Access to fertilizer in Africa is very limited, where available, this basic agro-input for increased production is simply too expensive for effective use.

Such shortcomings were meant to be addressed by progressive initiatives such as the Maputo Agreement that was signed in Mozambique in …

• The future of agriculture is digital not the hand-hoe
• The more efficient a farm is, the more productive it becomes without necessarily increasing land size.
• AfDB awards US$140,000 in grants to AgriPitch competition winners

Agriculture development for food security and poverty reduction cannot be realized without the adaptation of digital solutions.

Digital solutions offer more effective traceability, compliance and farm management systems which make the commercial, large or small, much more effective. In these modern times of food scarcity in the face of ever-increasing demand, efficiency is the name of the game.

The more efficient a farm is, the more productive it becomes without necessarily increasing land size or the amount of crops or animals.

“When it comes to subsistence agriculture, digital transformation is no longer a choice – it’s a need. You can either go digital or disappear,” warns Simon Winter, Executive Director at Syngenta Foundation for Sustainable Agriculture …

• AfDB announces US$ 1.5 billion funding for emergency food responce
• AfDB pledges seeds & fertilizers for 20 million smallholder farmers
• Oxfam warns of famine in Somalia

In May 2022, the African Development Bank (AfDB) Board of Directors approved $1.5 billion in funding for what the bank called the African Emergency Food Production Facility; one year down the road, has the funding achieved its purpose?

AfDB President Akinwumi Adesina described the facility as a necessary support for Africa’s emergency food response in the face of shortages caused by the Russia-Ukraine war.

The bank’s President said the funding will help to significantly increase food production in Africa and avert what he at the time described as ‘the looming food crisis caused by the Russia-Ukraine war.’

Making the announcement at the Summit of G7 leaders last year in Washington, Mr. Adesina announced that the African Development Bank (AfDB) would out of its own …

• Tanzania signs 161.47 million US dollars to implement Kakono HPP in Lake Zone
• European Union (EU) to chip in additional 35 million Euro for Kakono HPP 
• Kakono HPP will take five years to complete, feature a primary school, health centre

The government of Tanzania has secured funding for the Kakono Hydropower Project (Kakono HPP). The project is in line with the country’s Third Five-Year Development Plan (FYDP III) and aligns with President Samia Suluhu’s plan to foster a competitive industrial economy.

The Lake Zone, in the north-western part of Tanzania, is one of the country’s highest fossil fuel consuming region due to the low coverage by the national electricity grid. The region uses diesel generators making the region expensive for investors and residents.   

Funding a US$325 million power project in E. Africa

Also Read: French Development Agency provides $30 million for African SMEs

With assistance from the African Development Bank …

• US World Bank President nominee Ajay Banga chooses Africa for his first tour
• AfDB president Dr. Akinwumi Adesina calls for a new measure of economic growth
• AfDB launches Adesina Africa Industrialization Index (AII)

The World Bank is getting a new president and it will be likely US-nominee Ajay Banga who for his first global tour, chose to visit Africa. What does this maiden tour mean for the continent?

Back in February, US President Joe Biden announced Ajay Banga as the United States’ nominee for President of the World Bank Group. Should he be approved, Ajay Banga will be replacing the incumbent president, David Malpass, whose term ends in June.

Among his first moves on his way to the top office in the world’s largest financial institution, Banga, is making a strategic visit to Africa.

For the first stop of his World tour, Mr. Banga flew to Abidjan Côte d’Ivoire on …

Against all odds, Africa is enjoying faster economic growth than the rest of the world, and it will continue to do so for the next foreseeable future. This is according to the latest review by the Africa Development Bank (AfDB) which projects that the continent’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP) will grow 4% annually, on average, much better than the global average.

Released in Abidjan, Africa’s Macroeconomic Performance and Outlook Report indicates that in the medium-term, most regions in Africa will have moderate to strong economic performance.

“Despite facing significant headwinds due to global socio-economic shocks, all the five regions on the continent remain resilient with a steady outlook,” the report reassures stakeholders.

Also Read: Financing SMEs: Basis for impressive economic outlook

However, the report does highlight some red flags to watch out for that will require robust monetary and fiscal measures and structural policies.

The report is released at the …

The Horn of Africa region – Eritirea, Ethiopia, Sudan, Djibouti and Somali – has faced persistent food shortages due to a mix of climatic conditions and conflict in some parts of the region. Over 22 million people face a dire lack of food, a decade after setting the global sustainable development goals (SDGs).

Four consecutive seasons of failed rains in the region and in Northern Kenya has threatened to further exacerbate the food situation in the Horn.

The single known reason why rains are failing in what is supposed to be the world’s most rain rich region is climate change, and that is not a natural disaster, it is man made.

Also Read: The economics of harvesting rain

Weather patterns have changed. Seasons have become unpredictable. The phenomenon explains itself, weather, by definition is the condition of the atmosphere at any given time, but climate is the noted weather patterns …

• The United States has been working to increase its economic and political engagement with Africa in recent years.
• Yellen arrived in Dakar, fresh off a nearly three-hour meeting with China’s vice premier Liu He.
• The Biden administration is trying to counter China’s growing influence and infrastructure in the region by offering African countries an alternative path on economic and political security

US-Africa relations have been on the rise in recent years, and the recent visit by US Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen to Senegal has further solidified the commitment of the United States to expand economic opportunities for all in Africa.

Yellen’s visit to Senegal, which took place on January 18, 2023, was a clear demonstration of the importance the United States places on its relationship with Africa. During her visit, Yellen met with young entrepreneurs and business leaders, and delivered a speech emphasizing the potential of Africa’s young entrepreneurs and …

• Tanzania President Samia Suluhu has urged the world to look to Africa for energy amid the climate, energy and geopolitical crises that have been raging for some years now.
• Speaking during the 53rd World Economic Forum Annual Meeting as a session on  “Repowering the World” Suluhu said Africa has everything when it comes to energy. 
• Africa needs a lot of energy as many Fourth Industrial Revolution technologies are being applied there and a lot of related manufacturing is carried out there.

Tanzania President Samia Suluhu has urged the world to look to Africa for energy amid the climate, energy and geopolitical crises that have been raging for some years now. 

Speaking during the 53rd World Economic Forum Annual Meeting as a session on  “Repowering the World” Suluhu said Africa has everything when it comes to energy. 

“It is time the world looked to Africa for energy. We have everything when …

The African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) could deliver far greater benefits in terms of jobs, growth, and poverty reduction than previously estimated – making it a potential game changer for Africa’s economic development if its ambitious goals are fully realized, a World Bank 2022 report indicates.

Two key points stand out in that World Bank statement, first ‘AfCFTA could deliver greater benefits…than previously estimated,’ and second, ‘if it’s ambitious goals are fully realized.’

The first point begs the question how could a continent-wide trade pact be undervalued,’ and the second is the possibility that the one trade zone might not take off as planned.

Also Read: East African SMES ready to tap into the wider African market

Let us look at the AfCFTA goals and determine whether they are indeed ambitious or just realistic and if so, let us review the hurdles that may derail AfCFTA from achieving …