TO HOME

December 22, 2023The Punch Newspaper(Source: ADBG)he President of the African Development Bank, Dr Akinwunmi Adesina, has been announced as the winner of the 2023 Obafemi Awolowo Prize for Leadership.The Chairman of the Selection Committee, Emeka Anyaoku, disclosed this at a press conference held in Gbagada Phase 2, Lagos State, on Thursday.Anyaoku said since the commencement of the Obafemi Awolowo Prize for Leadership in 2013, three distinguished personalities had so far been conferred with the award, saying Adesina would be the fourth recipient.According to him, the award was an initiative of the Obafemi Awolowo Foundation, which was set up in April 1992 to serve as the custodian of the late Chief Obafemi Awolowo’s intellectual and leadership legacy.He said the award “was established as an independent, non-profit, non-partisan organisation dedicated to immortalising the democratic and development-oriented ideals of Chief Obafeni Awolowo.”While describing Awolowo as a Pan-African nationalist of global repute, Anyaoku described the award as “a prestigious, biennial, international prize structured to follow a rigorous process of nomination and subsequent screening by a selection committee consisting of some of the most outstanding Nigerians.”In line with the relevant guidelines for the selection of candidates for the award, Anyaoku noted that nominations were received about many eminent persons who have made tremendous contributions in various spheres of life.“After a careful, detailed and rigorous screening process, the selection committee was unanimous in deciding the recipient of this year’s prize. I have great pleasure easure to inform you that the considered view of the selection committee is that, of all the nominees presented before it, the person adjudged to possess the attributes for the award to the highest degree and therefore, the recipient of the 2023 Obafemi Awolowo Prize for Leadership is Dr. Akinwunmi Ayodeji Adesina, CON, President of the African Development Bank,” he said.Adesina, a former Nigerian Minister of Agriculture in the administration of former President Goodluck Ebele Jonathan, was described by Anyaoku as “a Pan-Africanist with enthusiastic commitment to the positive transformation of the continent,” who he said had demonstrated core leadership qualities that had been associated with Chief Obafemi Awolowo, and which this prize is meant to encourage and reward.”As Minister of Agriculture in Nigeria, Anyaoku recalled that Adesina introduced innovative reforms such as the fertilizer sector reforms, “which virtually eliminated corruption in the sector and ensured that farmers actually benefitted from government’s subsidized fertilizers.“He developed a system that allowed farmers to receive electronic vouchers for seeds and fertilizers directly on their mobile phones, thereby cutting off the middlemen in the system. Not less than 15 million farmers benefitted from this scheme within four years.\\xa0“Since assuming office as President of the African Development Bank (AfDB). Dr. Adesina has worked relentlessly to contribute to the positive transformation of the continent. He has brought leadership to bear in addressing some of the challenges confronting the continent including leading and supporting innovative efforts to fight hunger and poverty.”It was disclosed that the award would be presented to Adesina on March 6, 2024, which is Awolowo’s birth anniversary.Speaking at the unveiling, Afenifere leader, Ayo Adebanjo, said Nigerians needed to stop supporting poor leadership and keep government on their toes.Adebanjo expressed concern that youths of nowadays turn supporters to “election riggers” the moment they are appointed as personal assistants.The nonagenarian said he had continued to fight for a better Nigeria because of the youths.“Those of us in the struggle today don’t stand to gain anything. I am still in the trenches at 95, to gain what? To send children to school or for what?”He vowed to fight the Nigerian cause till he breathed his last, saying he did not believe in parties that have no ideology.“A lot of those who are ruling you now are rogues personified,” he declared.

In an exclusive interview with The Guardian, Akinwumi Adesina, President of the African Development Bank (AfDB), shares his optimism about Africa\'s prospects and the need to dispel misconceptions. This insightful discussion took place ahead of the World Bank meetings in Morocco, where Adesina highlighted key factors shaping Africa\'s path forward.   Adesina emphasized Africa\'s demographic advantage, pointing to its youthful population as a valuable global workforce. He stressed the importance of moving away from raw material exports and focusing on adding value through participation in global value chains, a shift that promises economic growth and prosperity.   The AfDB, founded in 1964 and Africa\'s sole AAA-rated financial institution, aligns its goals with Adesina\'s \"high fives.\" These priorities encompass universal electricity access, improving quality of life, fostering industrialization, achieving food self-sufficiency, and integrating Africa\'s 54 countries to create more robust markets.   Adesina also discussed the bank\'s recent achievements, including a significant increase in capital from its shareholders, enabling it to swiftly respond to crises like the COVID-19 pandemic and food shortages resulting from geopolitical events.   At the heart of Adesina\'s message is a call for fairer international financial systems, ensuring African nations receive equitable access to reserves and liquidity. He will advocate for this at the World Bank summit.   Adesina challenged the perception of corruption in Africa, highlighting the importance of transparency, accountability, and responsible resource management. He cited examples of countries like Eritrea, where corruption is minimal, and emphasized the AfDB\'s commitment to good governance.   Lastly, Adesina addressed the urgent climate crisis, urging increased climate finance for Africa, which experiences substantial annual losses due to climate change impacts. He also advocated for reevaluating Africa\'s wealth based on its natural capital, emphasizing the continent\'s role in providing global environmental benefits.   In closing, Adesina\'s optimism is grounded in data, as reflected in Africa\'s low default rates on infrastructure investments, setting the stage for global investments to land successfully on the continent.

In the bustling city of Busan, South Korea, an echo for strengthened ties and unified strides toward sustainable future resonated prominently as the 7th Korea-Africa Economic Cooperation (KOAFEC) Ministerial Conference commenced. The call for solidarity was led by Akinwumi Adesina, the President of the African Development Bank Group, as he encouraged delegates to harness the conference as a pivotal juncture to catalyze support for Africa\'s transformation into a global breadbasket and a hub of universal energy access.  Adesina highlighted the pressing need to galvanize additional resources for the attainment of these lofty goals. A key facet of this ambition involves the prospective reallocation of the International Monetary Fund\'s Special Drawing Rights (SDRs) to the African Development Bank, a move he posits could potentially be a \"game changer for Africa\'s development\". He passionately called upon Korea to align with other countries in contributing to this pivotal reallocation, which promises to spearhead unprecedented development in Africa.   As discussions unfolded at the conference, co-hosted by the African Development Bank Group and the Ministry of Economy and Finance of the Republic of Korea, the air was charged with anticipation and optimism for the mutually beneficial partnerships on the horizon. The theme of the event, “Embracing a Sustainable Future: Just Energy Transition and Agricultural Transformation in Africa,” echoes the critical development priorities of the continent, setting the stage for a synergy between Korea\'s technological prowess and Africa\'s vibrant young demographic and abundant resources.   Emphasizing the considerable untapped agricultural potential of the continent, Adesina remarked, \"Africa must be a solution to feeding the world, as it has 65% of the uncultivated arable land left in the world.\" He underscored that Africa\'s trajectory in the agricultural sector would play a decisive role in shaping the global food landscape in the coming years.   The conference also served as a platform for the unveiling of several collaborative initiatives, including the Korean government\'s K-Rice Belt project which aims to assist eight African nations in cultivating 30 million tons of rice. This initiative resonates with the African Development Bank’s Feed Africa strategy and echoes the outcomes of the Dakar 2 Food Summit held earlier this year, both endeavoring to lead Africa to food self-sufficiency within a half a decade.   Addressing the energy crisis that plagues the continent, where nearly 600 million individuals lack access to electricity, Adesina underscored Africa\'s vast renewable energy potential. He highlighted that the continent is home to an impressive 11 terawatts of solar potential, of which only a fraction is currently utilized. Despite the significant strides in renewable energy investments, Adesina cautioned against an exclusive reliance on renewables due to their inherent variability, advocating for a judicious utilization of Africa\'s newly discovered abundant natural gas resources as part of a balanced energy portfolio.   The African Development Bank, under Adesina\'s stewardship, has embarked on an ambitious journey to foster collaborations with global partners in fostering a just energy transition. This involves substantial partnerships with nations including the European Union, the United States, the United Kingdom, Germany, and France, focusing on sustainable energy initiatives in African nations like South Africa and Senegal.   As the conference drew to a close, Adesina\'s optimistic note left an indelible mark on the attendees. He envisaged a radiant future for Africa, powered by a robust partnership with South Korea. Together, they aspired to forge a path of accelerated growth and development, working hand in hand to realize a vision of a prosperous, self-sufficient, and sustainable Africa, making strides toward a brighter tomorrow for all its inhabitants.

In the 2023 commencement address at Oxford University\'s Saïd Business School, the African Development Bank President, Dr. Akinwumi Adesina, urged the graduating MBA students to apply their newly acquired skills and knowledge to address pressing global issues such as climate change and world hunger. He emphasized the unacceptable reality of 2.3 billion people facing hunger daily and underscored the graduates\' responsibility as change-makers equipped with world-class education. He highlighted various global challenges, including the lack of access to essential amenities such as electricity, clean water, sanitation, and basic financial services that billions face worldwide. Adesina urged graduates to work towards ensuring a better future for the 244 million children not attending school, including 129 million girls. Adesina insisted on the need for a restructured global financial system to address these challenges more effectively and urged the graduates to lead efforts in directing the $145 trillion managed by global pension funds and institutional investors towards the collective good. He also encouraged them to be selfless, promote transparency and inclusion, and avoid corporate greed\'s corruptive influences.In addition to Adesina, Saïd Business School faculty members encouraged the graduates to dream big, take up leadership roles, and make positive impacts in the world. They were also advised to forge their paths confidently, while promoting unity and addressing global issues such as the looming new Cold War and global warming.At the end of the event, Adesina engaged with some of the African graduates, discussing leadership, the future of Africa, and the role of youth in its development.

Akinwumi Adesina, president of the African Development Bank (AfDB), says Africa’s carbon sequestration capacity must be accounted for in its overall gross domestic product (GDP).Carbon sequestration is the capturing and storage of carbon dioxide (CO2) in plants, soils, geologic formations, and the ocean.Speaking on Tuesday at the Africa Climate Summit in Nairobi, Kenya, Adesina said Africa has a rich natural wealth and the largest carbon mass, yet the emissions it sequesters are not being accounted for.“We must revalue the wealth of Africa by accounting for the proper valuation of our abundant natural resources, including the diverse forests that sequester the carbon,” he said“The Congo forest basin is the world’s largest carbon mass, larger than the Amazon forest. Yet Africa’s rich nature wealth and the global value of this carbon it sequesters for the world are not accounted for, in the estimation of its GDP.“It is not enough to praise Africa for its rich natural capital, its GDP must take that into consideration. Africa’s GDP must therefore be revalued based on its carbon sequestration and biodiversity to provide global public goods.“If this is done, the test to adjust the GDP ratio of several African countries must offer more funds to support their economy, including investing in the greening of their economies.“We must therefore turn Africa’s economies green, not because others asked us to do so but because it is in our interest to do so. Africa must develop its own carbon markets, properly drive it and turn its vast carbon sinks into new sources of enormous wealth.”FINANCIAL COMMITMENTS TO TACKLE CLIMATE CHANGE IN AFRICAAdesina enumerated initiatives that the AfDB will be financing to tackle climate change in Africa.The AfDB president said the bank hopes to address issues bordering on food insecurity, power, marginalised groups, youth entrepreneurship and climate disasters.He said addressing the climate crisis requires action at three levels – meeting the $100 billion climate finance pledge at the global level; changing the global climate financial architecture to prioritise the needs of Africa; and accelerating action on climate adaptation at the national level.“That is why the African Development Bank has committed to providing $25 billion towards climate finance by 2025,” he said.“We have also launched the African adaptation acceleration programme together with the Global Centre on Adaptation (GCA), the largest climate adaptation programme in the world.“We must fully unlock Africa’s renewable energy potential. That is why the African Development Bank is implementing a $20 billion designated power programme to harness the power of solar and deliver electricity for 250 million people.“We must power every home, every school, every hospital and provide stable, affordable and reliable power.”Adesina also announced a $1 billion initiative to support youth-led solutions as well as a $72 billion to support African countries in ensuring food security within the next five years.African Development Bank President Adesina with former UN Secretary General Ban Ki Moon, other global climate champions and African youth at the University of Nairobi’s Wangari Maathai Institute of Peace and Environment.

July 28, 2023African Development Bank GroupAfrican Development Bank Group President Dr Akinwumi Adesina has been honoured by the Nigerians in Diaspora Commission (NIDCOM) with the prestigious National Diaspora Merit Award in recognition of hi selfless service and contributions as a Nigerian Diaspora Global Icon.Other recipients in the Global Icon category are United Nations Deputy Secretary General Amina J. Mohammed, and Director General of the World Trade Organization Dr Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala.NIDCOM is an agency under Nigeria’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs responsible for engaging with the Nigerian diaspora community. The award ceremony took place on Wednesday 26 July 2023 at the State House Banquet Hall of the Presidential Villa in Abuja during National Diaspora Day 2023 organised under the theme “Consolidating Diaspora Engagement for National Development”.Guests included Bank Group Chief Economist and Vice President for Economic Governance and Knowledge Management Professor Kevin Chika Urama, as well as Dr Adesina’s Adviser on Stakeholder Engagement, Ms Lola Visser-Mabogunje. Also present at the award ceremony in Abuja were executives  and members of Nigerians in Diaspora Organisation (NIDO) from across the world, senior government, officials, captains of industry and members of the diplomatic community.Chairperson and Chief Executive Officer of NIDCOM Dr Abike Dabiri-Erewa said the conferment of a National Diaspora Merit Award on Dr Adesina was “in recognition of his selfless service and contributions as a Nigerian Diaspora Global Icon. Dr Dabiri-Erewa said NIDCOM appreciated Dr Adesina’s “unflinching love and contributions to national development”. “This award is predicated upon the importance of recognising and celebrating Nigerians in the diaspora who have excelled in their various fields of endeavour and contributing to the development of Nigeria,” Dr Dabiri-Erewa said. “These exceptional Nigerians have, over time, contributed to making Nigeria a better place in their own capacities. It is thus important that the Federal Government of Nigeria, through the Commission, recognises their remarkable feats,” she said.Receiving the award on behalf of the President, the Director General of the African Development Bank Group’s Nigeria Country Department, Lamin Barrow, expressed gratitude to NIDCOM for the great recognition of President Adesina’s outstanding achievements and contributions to Nigeria and the continent’s development efforts. “The award will inspire him further to continue his unrelenting efforts for Nigeria and Africa’s transformation,” Mr Barrow said.Dr Adesina thanked NIDCOM in a written statement. “I am pleased to accept the award with humility. I am deeply touched by this acknowledgement of my modest contributions to finance and economics and my recognition as a role model to other Nigerians in the diaspora,” Dr Adesina stated. Often described as “Africa’s Optimist-in-Chief”, Dr Adesina is widely lauded for his visionary leadership and passion for Africa’s transformation. His bold reforms as Nigeria’s Minister of Agriculture turned the sector around in four years, benefiting 15 million farmers through an electronic wallet system. As President of the African Development Bank Group, Dr Adesina achieved the highest-ever capital increase and led swift responses to the Covid-19 pandemic. He has received numerous accolades, including the World Food Prize and African of the Year.More than 20 other Nigerians in the diaspora, including Emeritus Professor  Augustine Esogbue, Professor Mobolaji Aluko and Professor Rotimi Jayesimi, received awards in various categories on Wednesday, including education, politics, information and communications technology, leadership development, medicine and healthcare, automobile, philanthropy and sports. 

8 March, 2023AfDBA year after launching the EDGE certification(link is external) process, the African Development Bank has attained Level 1 Assess, in recognition of its commitment to monitoring, benchmarking and achieving gender parity in its workforce.The Bank began the EDGE certification process in 2022. EDGE is the world\'s leading certification that measures gender equity in the workplace.The Bank is now EDGE certified at Level 1 (EDGE Assess), which recognizes the organization’s commitment to an impactful action plan to accelerate its progress across the 4 pillars of the EDGE Global Standards - representation, pay equity, policies and practices, and inclusiveness of culture.“This is a new milestone in the Bank’s journey to join, under the leadership of our President Dr. Akinwumi A. Adesina, a global community of organizations committed to giving equal opportunities to men and women in the workplace,”said African Development Bank Acting Vice President Jacques Edjangue.“Significant progress has been made on the Learning & Development front to empower our women in the workplace, ”the Acting VP added.EDGE noted in a statement(link is external) on its website that the Bank, “by working to close gaps identified during the assessment, will continue to expand its efforts towards creating a more gender-equal workplace.”The African Development Bank remains committed to pursuing initiatives and procedures that promote gender equality within its institutions. In 2019, 83% of the executive workforce at the African Development Bank was men. But within three years, the ratios of women at senior leadership had changed from 17% to 32%. The Bank has set a goal for reaching 50/50 gender parity across its workforce in the near future.Aniela Unguresan, Founder of EDGE Certified Foundation said: “It is with great pride that we announce the certification of the African Development Bank Group at the first EDGE Certification level, EDGE Assess. We look forward to the African Development Bank Group’s continued progress towards gender equality in the workplace as the organization works towards the next EDGE Certification level.”

December 22, 2022Independent Nigeria   Eunice Adesina, the mother of Akinwumi Adesina, president of the African Development Bank (AfDB), is dead.Adesina announced her demise in a tweet on his official Twitter handle on Thursday.She died at the age of 92.“My darling mother, Eunice O. Adesina passed away today at the age of 92. I am blessed you were my mother,” he wrote.“You gave birth to me, nursed me, cared for and brought me up. I am forever grateful Mum. So long sweet Mum, greet Dad and sleep well. I love you. Your loving baby, Akins.”Roland Adesina, the father of the AfDB president, died on March 28, 2018.The AfDB president had also tweeted about his father’s death at the time and described him as his best friend.“My darling father and best friend, Roland F. Adesina, passed away yesterday morning. I wouldn’t have been who I am today without your love and sacrifice. Thanks for sending me to school and being a role model. Rest in peace my very dear senior Ombros!” he wrote.

November 11, 2022African Development Bank GroupTwenty African youth-led enterprises have won grant funding of up to $100,000 each in this year’s African Youth Adaptation Solutions Challenge (YouthADAPT) competition. In addition to the grant, each winner benefits from a 12-month accelerator program to help them grow their businesses, deepen their impact and create decent jobs.The annual competition and awards program for youth-led enterprises—which is 50% women-led—is jointly organized by the Global Center on Adaptation, the African Development Bank and Climate Investment Funds (CIF). The program is part of the Africa Adaptation Acceleration Program YouthADAPT flagship pillar(link is external).The program boosts sustainable job creation by supporting entrepreneurship and youth-led innovations in climate change adaptation and resilience across Africa. The competition invites young entrepreneurs and micro, small, and medium-sized enterprises in Africa to submit innovative solutions and business ideas that can drive climate change adaptation and resilience.Speaking at the awards ceremony, African Development Bank Group President Dr. Akinwumi Adesina, said: “Africa’s needs cannot be ignored. The youth must be at the center of everything we are doing about climate change. No young person is too young to engage in climate dialogue. Our young people must be part of the solution. They are creative, dynamic, and engaging. They are futuristic and must be part of the solution for climate adaptation in Africa.“We want the youth to speak for Africa and develop solutions for the continent. For this initiative last year, we supported 10 youth-owned and youth-led businesses in Africa with $1 million. This year, we are supporting 20 businesses with $2 million. So, we can expect that next year, we will double efforts to $4 million dollars. That’s the way it’s going to go for Africa.”Adesina observed that 80% of the winners’ businesses were in agriculture. He said: “Agriculture is the future of Africa. As you know, that has been my gospel for many decades. The lowest bar is for Africa to feed itself. The high bar is for Africa to feed the world. Agriculture is a business. I encourage our young people to do three things: Create, Adapt and Prosper. CAP for short.”Norway’s Minister of International Development Anne Beathe Tvinnereim commended the enthusiasm that the competition generated among the youth. She said it is important to tailor climate solutions that could be scaled up for the various communities. “That is where the youth of Africa come in – you see the problem; you see the solutions and you have the energy and the resources to deliver and we want to help you with that,” She said. She commended the African Development Bank and the Global Adaptation Center for creating the initiative.Professor Patrick Verkooijen, CEO of the Global Center on Adaptation spoke about the impact of the award on one of last year’s winners, Juveline Ngum Ngwa from Bamenda in Cameroon who was able to scale up her business, Bleglee Waste Management. As a result of last year’s grant, she was able to open a second waste sorting factory and has developed further software for her drones which identify garbage which is blocking drainage systems.He remarked: “Adaptation is good business. But it needs to be at scale. And that is exactly what the Africa Adaptation Acceleration Program – the AAAP – does. The AAAP is mobilizing $25 billion over five years to scale up and accelerate adaptation climate adaptation actions across Africa. And one of its four pillars is the YouthADAPT flagship program.”The winning enterprises of the Youth Adaptation Solutions Challenge 2022 come from all parts of the continent. Half are female led. They are scaling innovations in critical social and economic sectors affected by climate change. These include agriculture, waste management, water resources and sanitation, renewable energy and energy efficiency.The 2022 winners of the African Youth Adaptation Solutions Challenge are:· Flushh, Namibia· Green Impact Technologies, Malawi· AgriTech Analytics, Kenya· Baramoda, Egypt· Cassavita, Cameroon· Ecobarter, Nigeria· Farmer Lifeline Technologies, Kenya· Grocircular Agro Services, Nigeria· IRIBA Water Group Ltd, Rwanda· Mpatsa Engineering Company Limited (formerly Sustainable Water Irrigation and Farming Technologies), Malawi· Viva Organica, Botswana· Voltx for Engineering & Industries, Egypt· West African Feeds, Ghana· Kisumeo Organics Limited, Kenya· Agroexpert farming, Senegal· Eurl Algerienne Des Industries Technologiques, Algeria· Lono, Côte d\'Ivoire· Pazelgreen Technologies, Nigeria· Akatale On Cloud, Uganda· Multi-Tech Sustainable Solutions (MTTS), CameroonProgram organizers received 3,000 applications for this year’s competition. The top 50 were shortlisted to pitch their innovations before a jury.

November 5, 2022ReutersThe African Development Bank raised $31 billion in investment commitments for projects during the Africa Investment Forum, said the bank’s president Akinwumi Adesina at the end of the three-day meeting on Friday.It brings the total investment for the year to about $64 billion, said Adesina. The bank secured $32.8 billion at another meeting with investors in March.Adesina gave few details about the projects but said one focus would be agricultural processing zones.Projects announced earlier in the year were from sectors including agriculture and agro-processing, education, energy and climate, healthcare, minerals and mining, and information and communications technology.

October 15, 2022African Development Bank GroupU.S.-based Foundation for Democracy in Africa, an advocacy and research think tank, has conferred its topmost Medal of Glory Award on African Development Bank President Akinwumi Adesina for his exemplary leadership.The Medal of Glory Award is the Foundation’s highest honor, given annually for extraordinary contributions to democracy, good governance, and the advancement of trade, investment and cultural ties in Africa.For Adesina, the award selection committee recognized, in particular, the bank Group’s Covid-19 response “that provided African Governments and the private sector with critical financial help on debt relief and a fiscal stimulus package that ensured continuity of government and provision of social goods during the darkest months and years of the global pandemic in Africa.”Senior Advisor on Communication at the African Development Bank Group, Dr. Victor Oladokun, received the award on Adesina’s behalf at the Foundation’s annual AfrICANDO 2022 conference and exhibition held in Miami, Florida, on October 13.Dr. Oladokun commended the Foundation’s leadership for its consistent advocacy for Africa, especially in building investment bridges between the U.S. and the continent. He also thanked the award selection committee for recognizing the transformative work of Adesina and the Bank Group.“This Medal of Glory Award is an inspiration to bring greater glory to Africa. I want to assure you that Dr. Adesina will continue to do that, and so will the African Development Bank Group,” the senior advisor said.He called on the Foundation, its affiliates, and global delegates to support the Bank’s initiatives for addressing climate change and food security. He also urged the international community to rally behind the bank’s advocacy for a portion of the IMF’s additional Special Drawing Rights to help build resilience in Africa.Dr. Oladokun stressed: “Africa faces an existential crisis that is not of its own making. We must therefore translate visionary leadership into concrete action.”The Foundation also awarded three local government commissioners in Florida for their dedicated public service. It also presented a posthumous award for a retired media specialist for a lifetime commitment to community service.The annual AfrICANDO conference brings producers from sub-Saharan Africa under one roof to showcase their exportable products to importers, business leaders, investment promotion authorities, policymakers, and ambassadors from Africa.This year’s event focused on health security, climate and food security, and tourism. It comprises seminars, business-to-business matchmaking, and exhibitions. It was crowned with a gala awards dinner at the Hilton Airport and Convention Center, Miami.Past recipients of the Medal of Glory Award include late Malawi President Bingu Wa Mutharika; former Nigerian President Olusegun Obasanjo; Senator Connie Mack of Florida, Dr. Dorothy Height, President of the National Council of Negro Women; former Senegalese Presidents Abdou Diouf and Abdoulaye Wade, former Malian President Alpha Omar Konare; and Dr. Mo Ibrahim, founder of Mo Ibrahim Foundation.

all Africa6 October 2022African Development Bank President Dr. Akinwumi Adesina has been named 2022 Man of the Year (Africa) by Exclusive Men of the Year (EMY), for his visionary leadership as the president of the African Development Bank Group and for his outstanding contribution to Africa during his period as agriculture minister of Nigeria.The EMY awards are organized by the EMY Africa Magazine, \"a premier men\'s magazine that addresses the people, places, ideas and issues that shape men\'s personal expressions, development and experiences.\"\"When we look around, we see different people making their contributions to society. We know Africa is going to be Africa if we harness our agricultural value and go up the value chain. One man has stood up for his inspiration, for his motivation and for making us believe with a vision and strategy that we can achieve this,\" said UN Resident Coordinator in Ghana, Charles Abani, who announced the prize during a ceremony held on 1 October in Accra, Ghana.As Minister of Agriculture in Nigeria from 2011 to 2015, Adesina is credited with turning the agriculture sector of Nigeria around within four years. Under his tenure, Nigeria ended 40 years of corruption in the fertilizer sector by developing and implementing an innovative electronic wallet system, which directly provided farmers with subsidized farm inputs at scale using their mobile phones. Within the first four years of its launch, this electronic wallet system reached 15 million farmers.With Adesina at the helm, the African Development Bank Group achieved the highest capital increase since its establishment in 1964. On 31 October 2019, shareholders from 80 member countries raised the general capital from $93 billion to a historic $208 billion.Adesina has also led other achievements such as the Bank\'s bold and swift response to the Covid-19 pandemic with the launch of a landmark $3 billion Covid-19 Social Bond followed by a Crisis Response Facility of up to $10 billion. In May this year, the African Development Bank Group\'s Board of Directors approved a $1.5 billion Emergency Food Production Facility to help tackle the global food crisis sparked by the Russian-Ukraine conflict. The funds will help 20 million African farmers produce an extra 38 million metric tons of food to address growing fears of starvation and food insecurity on the continent.In announcing the Man of The Year (Africa) award, EMY recognized Dr Adesina\'s contribution as \"a bold reformer\" and \"globally renowned development economist and agriculture development expert, with more than 30 years of experience in development.\"Since 2016, EMY Africa has celebrated the best in men\'s achievements across local industry, community, culture and public service. Past recipients of the EMY Africa Awards have been inspirational men with accomplished or promising careers who have made important contributions to life in African communities.Receiving the award on behalf of Dr. Adesina, African Development Bank Ghana Country manager for Ghana Eyerusalem Fasika thanked the EMY team and all the partners for the recognition.

September 17, 2022African Development Bank GroupSenegalese President and African Union chairperson Macky Sall has told development partners of the African Development Fund (ADF) to allow the fund to tap capital markets for more resources to meet the critical development needs of member countries. The African Development Fund is the African Development Bank Group’s concessional lending arm that supports the continent’s low-income countries.Sall said: “These are tough times for governments. We need investment and development. Today, youth are raising their voices, demanding employment. They are impatient. Governments must listen and invest more to create jobs and make African economies more competitive. The African Development Fund needs significant financing and should be allowed to go the capital markets.”The Senegalese leader was speaking to representatives of fund’s regional and non-regional member countries and senior management of the African Development Bank Group, who paid a courtesy call on him at his office in Dakar. The African Development Bank president led the delegation.The African Development Fund representatives were in Dakar for a two-day meeting to discuss the fund’s 16th replenishment.Adesina thanked President Sall for his leadership of the African Union, and for representing the continent at major international events to discuss Africa’s development.The Bank group head spoke about the transformative impact of the African Development Fund, which is marking 50 years since its inception.More ADF resources will help Africa address Covid, Climate, and ConflictSpeaking earlier at the start of the third ADF-16 replenishment meeting, Adesina said a significant addition of resources would help the fund address multiple challenges, notably, the devastating impacts of Covid-19, rising debt and economic vulnerability, a growing climate change disruption, and the threat of a food crisis triggered by Russia’s war in Ukraine.“Climate change is decimating the ADF countries, triggering even high pressure for migration to Europe in dangerous waters,” said the bank group chief. He pointed out that nine of the ten countries most vulnerable to climate change are in sub-Saharan Africa, and all are ADF countries.Adesina projected that African Development Fund countries would need $500 billion to adapt to climate change between now and 2030. He said recent data showed that Africa receives only 3% of global climate financing, adding that if this trend continued, the continent’s climate financing gap would reach $100 billion to $127 billion annually through 2030.“ADF will need a lot more resources, far beyond what donors can provide. So, we must ensure leverage to better resource ADF,” said Adesina. He added that if allowed to go to the capital markets, the fund could mobilize an additional $5.5 billion for each of its three-year replenishment cycles.Adesina described the fund a sound and unique institution delivering value for money.“The African Development Fund has connected 15.5 million people to electricity; supported 74 million people with improved agriculture; provided 50 million people with transport; built or rehabilitated 8,700 kilometers of roads; and provided 42 million people with upgraded water and sanitation facilities.”During the meeting with the ADF delegates, President Sall reiterated the need for developed economies to reallocate some of their International Monetary Fund (IMF) Special Drawing Rights (SDRs) to Africa.President Sall stressed that the African Development Bank, a prescribed holder, is best placed to deploy the SDRs to the continent by the end of this year. Out of the $650 billion announced by the IMF in 2021, African countries were cumulatively allocated just $33 billion.The African Development Bank president has emphasized that the bank can leverage the SDRs by three to four times to deliver more support to African countries. “The bank’s AAA rating allows it to provide finance to African nations at interest rates that are far more attractive than what they can obtain on their own through commercial financing,” he explains. Senegal’s minister of economy, planning and cooperation, Amadou Hott, underscored the African Development Fund’s critical role in helping countries address vulnerability. “A strong mobilization of concessional and mixed resources is more essential than ever to support our countries, support their recovery plans, and meet all the challenges they are facing,” said Hott, who is also the governor of the African Development Bank for Senegal.

 August 10, 2022Blueprint(Picture  LEADERSHIP)President, African Development Bank (AfDB) Dr Akinwumi Adesina says the bank is set to deliver climate-adapted, certified wheat and other staple crops seeds to 20 million farmers. Adesina said this in a document titled, “Averting an African Food Crisis: The African Food Production Facility” and obtained on Monday in Abuja. He said the initiative, which was part of activities by the bank would tackle food crisis in African countries including Nigeria.The president said the delivery of seeds and increased access to agricultural fertilisers would be done through the bank’s African Emergency Food Production Facility. Adesina said within the next two years, the facility would allow farmers to produce 38 million additional tonnes of food.He said that part of the plan was a 30 per cent increment in local production worth an estimated 12 billion dollars. He also said that it would facilitate better global investment in Africa’s agricultural sector. Adesina said that the facility would also support enhanced governance and policy reforms. “From the onset, the African Development Bank realised the strategic need to tackle the devastating impact of the war on Africa’s food security. It is important to prevent unrest and even more human suffering. In May, the bank established a 1.5 billion dollar African Emergency Food Production Facility. In less than 60 days, it put into action 1.13 billion dollar-worth of programmes under the facility across 24 African countries. Half a dozen more programmes are expected to get underway by September as more governments apply to the facility,’’ he said.According to him, food aid cannot feed Africa because Africa does not need bowls in hand. “Africa needs seeds in the ground and mechanical harvesters to harvest bountiful food produced locally.“Africa will feed itself with pride because there is no dignity in begging for food.’’ The president said that the African Emergency Food Production Facility had benefited from stakeholder consultations. He said the price of wheat had soared in Africa by more than 45 per cent since the war in Ukraine began. Adesina also said fertiliser prices had gone up by 300 per cent while the continent faced a fertiliser shortage of two million metric tonnes. Many African countries have already seen price hikes in bread and other food items.

July 21, 2022African Business(출처  Ethiopian Monitor)The President of the African Development Bank Group (https://www.AfDB.org/) Dr. Akinwumi Adesina has given strong assurance to U.S. investors that Africa is a secure, competitive and profitable market for investment.Adesina was speaking on Wednesday at the U.S.-Africa Business Summit in Marrakech where he told American investors to see Africa as a logical investment destination and to engage with the continent in win-win partnerships.He said U.S. investments were critical for accelerating infrastructure development on the continent. “This is an opportune time for American investments in Africa, at scale,” Adesina said. “Tomorrow cannot wait. Africa’s time is now. Africa’s future is bright. We are open for business, and we welcome you with wide open arms.”The U.S. Corporate Council on Africa partnered with Morocco to organize the summit under the theme, ‘Building Forward Together.’ The event brought together global investors and corporate executives. Dignitaries and global leaders included President Mokgweetsi Masisi of Botswana and U.S. Vice President Kamala Harris who addressed delegates via a video message. Other dignitaries included Morocco’s Minister of Foreign Affairs, African Cooperation and Moroccan Expatriates, Nasser Bourita; the United States Millennium Challenge Corporation CEO Alice Albright; President of the General Confederation of Moroccan Enterprises, Chakib Ali; and Ms. Nardos Bekele-Thomas, the CEO of the African Union Development Agency NEPAD.More than 400 business and government representatives discussed building stronger U.S. and Africa trade, investment and commercial ties.In a video message, Vice President Kamala Harris said: “We are focused on the urgent need to increase food production and exports with and within Africa.” She said public-private partnerships could play a key role in this regard.Harris also recognized the critical importance of strengthening the U.S. relationship with countries across Africa. “President Biden and I are looking forward to welcoming leaders from across the African continent to Washington, DC from December 13th through the 15th, for the United States-Africa Leaders Summit,” she said. Adesina listed some of Africa’s multi-billion investments as proof of the continent’s investment potential. He cited the Dangote Group’s $20 billion petroleum refinery and fertilizer production complex in Nigeria, and South Africa’s MTN Group, which currently operates in 19 markets.The African Development Bank head said that despite the disruptions of the Covid-19 pandemic and its impact on economies, the number of private equity deals in Africa increased from 230 in 2019 to 255 by 2020, stressing that even in turbulent times, opportunities still abound in Africa.Adesina spoke about the African Development Bank Group’s investments to help improve livelihoods and economies. He said the Group had committed more than $44 billion to infrastructure across the continent in the last six years alone, most notably in transport, energy, and water and sanitation. But he pointed out that Africa still faced an annual infrastructure financing gap of $68 to $108 billion.The U.S. Millennium Challenge Corporation’s Alice Albright said: “We are all here and invested in creating more pathways to prosperity across the African continent. Through Prosper Africa – the U.S. Government’s initiative to increase trade and investment and promote sustainable development across the continent – and our collective efforts, we are strengthening partnerships to ensure people on both sides of the Atlantic have the opportunity to create a better life for their children, their families, and their communities, and to realize their full potential. Since launching Prosper Africa two years ago, the U.S. Government has supported 800 two-way trade and investment deals in 45 countries in Africa, worth an estimated $50 billion.“ Adesina invited American businesses to invest in the opportunities created by the African Development Bank Group’s $1.5 billion African Emergency Food Production Facility, designed to ease the impact of the current global food crisis, worsened by Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. The facility, the first of its kind, will help countries purchase and distribute agricultural fertilizer and seeds, provide emergency support over four planting seasons, increase food production by 30%, and create $12 billion worth of food.In his opening speech, Moroccan Foreign Affairs Minister Bourita said that never had the time been more opportune for strengthened cooperation between Africa and the United States than now. He said: “It is time for Africa to reap the fruits of its potentials, play a central and natural role on the international scene; and in major developments taking place at the global level.”

June 7, 2022 Devidiscourse(Pictures: Akinwumi Adesina\'s official Twitter account)African Development Bank Group President Dr. Akinwumi Adesina met with President Ismail Omar Guelleh of Djibouti and senior government officials at the weekend to discuss the country\'s economic progress and opportunities.Adesina was on a two-day official visit to the Horn of Africa nation. For more than two hours, he and President Guelleh discussed ways of transforming Djibouti\'s economy as the country strives to achieve its vision of becoming an information, communication and technology (ICT) hub in the region.The Bank Group chief received Djibouti\'s highest honor of Commandeur dans l\'ordre national, presented to him by Prime Minister Abdoulkader Kamil Mohamed.Djibouti is largely dry and barren. Its population of nearly one million people relies on imported food. Its Red Sea port remains the main source of income and employment. It is also a gateway for landlocked neighboring Ethiopia.Adesina said: \"Djibouti needs to look beyond the port, diversify its economy and scale up development. Flying over the country, one sees huge tracts of dry land. But it is only when one meets and talks to the people in this country that one realizes, there is no drought in terms of ideas, creativity, passion and determination.\"President Guelleh thanked Adesina for his first visit to Djibouti and commended the African Development Bank for its multifaceted assistance to the country.\"You are supporting us in various areas, including the budget support that the Bank is providing to help our country meet the unexpected effects of the Covid-19 crisis. We welcome your support to Djibouti by focusing on energy, climate change, agriculture and transport infrastructure resilience.\"Djibouti was invited to consider joining the Bank Group\'s Africa Disaster Risk Finance facility (ADRiFi), through which countries receive support to insure themselves against extreme weather events. The facility is already helping nine countries pay for insurance premiums to protect themselves from the effects of climate change.The Horn of Africa country could benefit from the introduction of the Bank\'s Technologies for African Agricultural Transformation program, which uses heat-resistant wheat and water-efficient maize varieties to increase farm productivity.Djibouti country could also consider hydroponics method that uses a water-based solution instead of soil to grow crops. Adesina said this could save Djibouti from relying on food imports.The Bank chief—who on Saturday toured a subsea cable landing station—said Djibouti had the potential to become a regional center of excellence in telecommunication. Djibouti Telecom has two subsea cable landing stations serving more than 50 telecommunication operators with connections to over 90 countries in the world.\"There is no doubt in my mind that Djibouti will further help to connect Africa to the rest of the world, and also become a global center with data centers,\" Adesina said, adding: \"I definitely see a \'Djibouti Beyond Ports,\' a nation that should move itself to becoming an ICT hub globally.\"Bright prospects for renewable energyThe Bank Group chief also toured one of Djibouti\'s interconnection substations for power imported from neighboring Ethiopia. The African Development Bank invested $60 million in the first interconnection with Ethiopia, to transmit a total of 320 megawatts. Djibouti has approached the Bank for a similar investment to distribute an additional 320-megawatt line from Semera in Ethiopia to Nagad in Djibouti, a distance of 192 kilometers.Adesina said Djibouti needed a diversified power generation system and encouraged the government to invest in wind and solar power.The African Development Bank has provided $20 million for geothermal exploration around Lake Assal region. The drilling and testing of the project have been completed.The Bank is discussing with Djibouti, the construction of the first solar plant that will generate 15 megawatts of power. This plant will be part of the Bank-funded $20 billion Desert-to-Power initiative, which will deliver electricity to 250 million people across 11 countries.Adesina said that with more African countries exploring clean and renewable energy, it is time to establish a regional training center for capacity building to serve the continent.The Bank chief met with seven cabinet ministers and other officials, including Minister for Economy and Finance Ilyas Moussa Dawaleh, who is also Djibouti\'s Governor for the African Development Bank Group.On Sunday, Adesina interacted with young entrepreneurs. Fahima Mohamed Ismail spoke proudly about her passion for agriculture: \"We are very well educated with PhDs, we put on makeup and we love agriculture.\"

Premium Times Nigeria2022년 5월 21일(Picture: Official Facebook page of Mr Adesina)The African Development Bank (AfDB) Group’s board of directors announced that it approved a $1.5 billion facility to help African countries avert a looming food crisis in the continent.In a statement issued by the bank on Friday, the bank said with the disruption of food supplies arising from the Russia-Ukraine war, Africa now faces a shortage of at least 30 million metric tons of food, especially wheat, maize, and soybeans mostly imported from both countries.“The African Development Bank’s $1.5 billion African Emergency Food Production Facility is an unprecedented comprehensive initiative to support smallholder farmers in filling the food shortfall,” the bank’s statement read.It said African farmers urgently need high-quality seeds and inputs before the planting season begins in May to immediately boost food supplies.According to the statement, the initiative will provide 20 million African smallholder farmers with certified seeds and that it will increase access to agricultural fertilizers and enable them to rapidly produce 38 million tons of food.“This is a $12 billion increase in food production in just two years,” the bank said.Akinwumi Adesina, AfDB group president was quoted to have said: “Food aid cannot feed Africa. Africa does not need bowls in hand. Africa needs seeds in the ground, and mechanical harvesters to harvest bountiful food produced locally. Africa will feed itself with pride for there is no dignity in begging for food.”He said the African Emergency Food Production Facility has benefited from stakeholder consultations, including those with fertilizer producers and separately with African Union agriculture and finance ministers earlier this month.Mr Adesina explained that the ministers agreed to implement reforms to address the systemic hurdles that prevent modern input markets from performing effectively.He said the price of wheat has soared in Africa by over 45 per cent since the war in Ukraine began.“Fertilizer prices have gone up by 300%, and the continent faces a fertilizer shortage of 2 million metric tons. Many African countries have already seen price hikes in bread and other food items. If this deficit is not made up, food production in Africa will decline by at least 20% and the continent could lose over $11 billion in food production value, ”the AfDB president said.PotentialsThe African Development Bank’s $1.5 billion package will lead to the production of 11 million tons of wheat; 18 million tons of maize; 6 million tons of rice; and 2.5 million tons of soybeans, the statement said.It said the initiative will provide 20 million farmers with certified seeds, fertilizer, and extension services and that it will also support market growth and post-harvest management.“The African Development Bank will provide fertilizer to smallholder farmers across Africa over the next four farming seasons, using its convening influence with major fertilizer manufacturers, loan guarantees, and other financial instruments,” the AfDB board said.The statement highlighted that the facility will also create a platform to advocate for critical policy reforms to solve the structural issues that impede farmers from receiving modern inputs.This, it said, includes strengthening national institutions and overseeing input markets and that the facility has a structure for working with multilateral development partners.“This will ensure rapid alignment and implementation, enhanced reach, and effective impact. It will increase technical preparedness and responsiveness. In addition, it includes short, medium, and long-term measures to address both the urgent food crisis and the long-term sustainability and resilience of Africa’s food systems,” the bank said.In her remarks, Beth Dunford, AfDB vice president for Agriculture, Human and Social Development, said: “The Africa Emergency Food Production Facility builds on lessons learned from the African Development Bank’s Feed Africa Response to Covid-19 program.”The program, she said, has provided a strategic roadmap to support Africa’s agriculture sector and safeguard food security against the pandemic’s impact.Over the past three years, the AfDB said its Technologies for African Agricultural Transformation initiative has delivered heat-tolerant wheat varieties to 1.8 million farmers in seven countries, increasing wheat production by 2.7 million metric tons worth $840 million.Long-term sustainability planThe statement noted that a five-year ramp-up phase will follow the two-year African Emergency Food Production Facility, with the view to build on previous gains and strengthen self-sufficiency in wheat, maize, and other staple crops, as well as expand access to agricultural fertilizers.It said the five-year phase will deliver seeds and inputs to 40 million farmers under the “Technologies for African Agricultural Transformation program”.The statement said in April, UN Secretary-General António Guterres, appointed Mr Adesina to a select Steering Committee of the Global Crisis Response Group.It noted that the U.S. Senate Appropriations Subcommittee on State and Foreign Operations recently invited Mr Adesina to make a presentation about the African Emergency Food Production Facility.“The Global Alliance for Food Security spearheaded by the Government of Germany provides an excellent forum for the African Emergency Food Program Facility, which is part of a coordinated and collective effort by development partners and countries to accelerate food production in the short term while remaining focused on medium- and longer-term actions to build resilience.” the statement added.

Bloomberg4 November 2021Akinwumi Adesina Photographer: Christopher Goodney/ BloombergNatural gas remains key to Africa’s energy security and economic prosperity, even as political pressure grows to speed up the transition away from fossil fuels, according to the continent’s biggest development bank.“Gas is fundamental to Africa’s energy system,” African Development Bank President Akinwumi Adesina said in an interview with Bloomberg News on Wednesday. “We’ve got to make sure that we’re pragmatic” and that a system is created to support long-term development, he said.While natural gas is less polluting than other fossil fuels such as coal and oil, some environmentalists want to end its use because the industry is responsible for methane that has far more planet-warming power than carbon dioxide.For African governments like Mozambique and Tanzania, where more than $50 billion-worth of gas projects are being discussed with companies including TotalEnergies SE and Equinor ASA, it tops the development agenda. In Kenya where the national electricity grid is already 90% renewable, authorities are considering converting the remaining fossil-fuel power plants to use liquefied natural gas.Even if Africa tripled its natural gas output, it would add under 1% to its less-than 3% contribution to global greenhouse gas emissions, said Adesina. The world needs to “be fair to Africa” because the continent needs to industrialize and create jobs which requires a stable energy supply, he said.

Date: September 29, 2021Media: africanewsThe fourth edition of the Africa Resilience Forum opened on Tuesday, as the continent’s most vulnerable communities confront the triple challenges posed by the Covid-19 pandemic, conflict and climate change.An estimated 39 million Africans could slip into extreme poverty this year, as a result of the pandemic. At the same time, countries are facing higher fiscal costs, reducing capacity for the critical investments required to deliver on ambitions such as the UN Sustainable Development Goals.The Africa Resilience Forum is a flagship African Development Bank event which brings together key stakeholders across government, civil society, the private sector, and international partners, to reflect on the continent’s conflict prevention, peace, and state-building initiatives.Amadou Hott, Senegal’s Minister of the Economy, Planning and Cooperation, shared some of the successes from his country that could prove useful in the current crisis. Speaking on behalf of President Macky Sall, Hott said Senegal had adopted a legal framework that provides for flexible and secure public-private partnerships. He said the crisis “reminds us of the need to reorganize our priorities, to strengthen the social protection of our populations and to establish a more endogenous development.”African Development Bank President Akinwumi A Adesina highlighted the Bank’s work in climate finance and landmark green projects, including the $20 billion Desert to Power solar energy program, which will provide clean energy to up to 250 million people across 11 countries in the Sahel region.“Across Africa, rising expenditures on defence and security, increasingly displace development financing on essential services such as education, health, water, sanitation, and affordable housing…This compromises long-term resilience needed to bounce back better,” Adesina said. “The hydra-headed challenges of this pandemic, insecurity, and climate change, continue to impact young men, women, and children the most.” Going forward, Adesina said the Bank would work closely with regional member countries on security-indexed bonds to address the root causes of insecurity by protecting investments and livelihoods.Moussa Faki Mahamat, Chairperson of the African Union Commission, said the continent’s wealth of natural resources and historic solidarity could “lay the groundwork for resilience.” He added: “The Covid pandemic made it possible to identify vulnerabilities and required a new vision for reform.”Day one featured two further sessions: one on the competing needs of development and security, especially in the prevailing environment of heightened fiscal constraints, while the second focused on climate adaptation, an emerging antidote to the destructive impact of extreme weather.The security panel featured Abebe Aemro Selassie, Director of the International Monetary Fund’s Africa Department, Dr. Jean-Claude Kassi Brou, President of the Commission of the Economic Community of West Africa States (ECOWAS), and Adriano Afonso Maleiane, Mozambique’s Minister of Economy and Finance.Minister Maleiane, whose country has been hit by both climate and security challenges, described the impact of the latter alone: “Today, spending on security is equal to investment. Without security (there is) no investment, no growth, nothing.”The next two days of the Africa Resilience Forum will centre on action around investing in women, youth employment, closing the digital divide, and boosting manufacturing in transition states. This year, the Forum will also serve as a platform to learn about the Bank’s new strategy for addressing fragility and building resilience in Africa (2022-2026).Learn more here about the 2021 Africa Resilience Forum (https://bit.ly/3ogQonb).Distributed by APO Group on behalf of African Development Bank Group (AfDB).

‘Nigeria’s youth must be turned into a first-rate, well-trained workforce’The President of the African Development Bank, AfDB, Dr. Akinwumi Adesina, has said that Nigeria’s diversity is not its problem, but rather how it’s managed for economic growth and development.Adesina shared his thoughts on what it will take to rebuild Nigeria and put it on a path to greatness in a keynote address at the convocation ceremony of the American University of Nigeria in Yola, Adamawa State capital.Citing Singapore as an example that has successfully managed ethnic, linguistic and religious diversity, Adesina said diversity is strength and not weakness.According to the AfDB President, Nigeria’s future rests on what it does now with its vibrant youth population.In the keynote titled “Building a New Nigeria: Imperatives for Shared Prosperity,” he said: “For Nigeria to be all that it can be, the youth of Nigeria must be all that they can be.He emphasized that Nigeria’s future development and growth hinged on transforming the country’s youth demographic advantage into a world-class and well-trained workforce for the country, region, and world.He urged stakeholders to prioritize investments in the youth, and up-skill them for future jobs, as well as shift from policies of “youth empowerment” to “youth investment”.According to Adesina, this would also help open social and political spaces for youth to air their views, become a positive force for national development, and ensuring the creation of youth-based wealth.“From the East to the West, from the North to the South, there must be a transformative  change in economic, financial, and business opportunities for young Nigerians,” the Bank President told the large gathering.“The young shoots are springing up in Nigeria. Today, Lagos has its own Silicon Valley. Yabacon Valley has emerged as one of the leading tech hubs in Africa with between 400 and 700 active start-ups worth over $2 billion, second only to Cape Town.Citing examples of entrepreneurial success among young Nigerians, he noted that “Andela, a global technology start-up based in Yabacon Valley, recently attracted $24 million in funding from Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg.The $200 million investment by Stripe (a Silicon Valley firm) in the local payments company Paystack, and $400 million into three Fintech companies in just one week in 2019 signals the huge potentials of Nigeria to attract global digital commerce and financial services.“The African Development Bank is currently working on a $500 million programme, Digital Nigeria, which is designed to transform Nigeria’s digital competitiveness and build on the incredible entrepreneurship of Nigeria’s youth.“The Bank is also exploring the establishment of Youth Entrepreneurship Investment Banks- financial institutions for young people, run by first-rate young bankers and financial experts, to drive youth-wealth creation,” he told participants.“Nigeria is blessed with incredibly rich diversity: of people, of cultures, of religions, of mineral resources, oil, and gas, amazingly rich biodiversity, that should make us the envy of the world.“We are blessed with abundantly diverse agro-ecologies, that should also make us a land of bountiful harvests with the capacity to feed Africa. Nigerians deserve wealth, not poverty,” he added.Students from all around Nigeria, as well as international students from South Africa, Cote d’Ivoire, Rwanda, Cameroon, India, and Romania, make up the American University of Nigeria’s class of 2020 and class of 2021.In his concluding remarks, Adesina urged the graduating class to make a difference in their sphere of influence, Nigeria and the world.“I have a dream that we will arise, from our challenges, and build a more prosperous and united nation,” Akinwumi Adesina prophesied.

The President of the African Development Bank, Akinwumi Adesina, has called for global support for Africa to move towards net-zero at the ongoing Leaders Summit on Climate convened by the President of the United States of America, Joe Biden.He made this call while participating in a panel session on how combined public and private finance can be galvanized to accelerate the move to a net-zero economy.“To be sure, climate change is a threat to Africa. The continent loses 7-15 billion dollars per year to climate change, and this will rise to 50 billion dollars per year by 2040 according to the IMF. Africa, the least emitter, suffers the worst of the impacts of climate change including droughts, floods, locust and pest invasions.“Africa is not at net-zero, Africa is at ground zero. We must, therefore, give Africa a lift to get a chance of adapting to what it did not cause,” he said.He also talked about how the African Development Bank is leading this charge to support Africa.According to him, “we have committed 25 billion dollars to climate finance over the next four years, our share of financing devoted to climate rose from just a mere 9% in 2016 to 35% in 2019 and we will reach 40% in 2021, this year. We are also setting the pace… African Development Bank is the only multilateral development bank to meet and exceed the 50% parity for climate adaptation and resilience. Indeed we devoted 50% of our climate finance to climate adaptation and resilience in 2018 and last year we increased that to a record 63%.”“We are climate-proofing Africa,” he added. “The bank is targeting 40 million farmers with climate-smart agricultural practices. We are also speeding up Africa’s energy transition to renewable energy. We help to support the largest wind power plant in Africa in Kenya. And now we have embarked on what we now call desert to power. A 20-billion-dollar investment that would provide opportunities to turn the Sahel into the world’s largest solar zone and provide electricity for 250 million people.”“We are securing the future of the Sahel. We have pledged 6.5 billion dollars towards building the great green wall in the Sahel to protect against desertification. We are deploying our Africa disaster risk facility to help countries to pay for insurance premiums against catastrophic climate events. We are also building strategic partnerships in particular with the Global Centre for Adaptation. And together we have created and launched the Africa Adaptation Acceleration Programme.”“Our goal is to mobilize 25 billion dollars for the programme exclusively for scaling up actions on climate adaptation. Just three weeks ago, thirty African heads of states, global leaders including the UN secretary-general, Guterres, joined forces to back this African Adaptation Acceleration Programme.”

The President of the African Development Bank (AfDB), Dr. Akinwumi Adesina, has called on the federal government to embark on bolder measures to enhance the competitiveness of youths in order to match their peers on the global level.He added that the government must do everything possible to reinvent itself by focusing on the youth population, adding that with a population of 206 million people, out of which 70 pent are under the age of 30 years, “what Nigeria does with its youth will determine the future of the country”.He spoke virtually at the Joshua Generation International Youth Conference, themed: “Living with a Purpose,” held recently.He expressed worry that currently, Nigeria’s youths are faced with several challenges, including unemployment, limited technical and vocational skills, limited inclusion in social and political space, and lack of financing for ventures and businesses.Adesina said: “The greater wealth of Africa, and of course Nigeria, will come from the youth. I know there are several misconceptions about the youth. I don’t understand why, because I was once a youth myself.“The youth are not the problem of Nigeria; the youth are the assets of Nigeria. We must not relegate the youth to the background; we must put the youth in the fore.”He added that the country must explore all possibilities to reinvent itself by focusing on the youth, adding that, “Nigeria must embark on bolder measures to grow its youth into a well-trained globally competitive workforce.“The youth do not need empowerment. Look around, often those who say they are empowering them are actually simply empowering themselves. The youth do not need handouts. The youth need investment.”Adesina further said the AfBD recognized the importance of youth to the economy, stressing that this was why the bank created the Youth Entrepreneurship Investment Banks.Through this, he said they will be financial institutions for young people, run by first-rate young bankers and financial experts, to drive youth-wealth creation in Africa.He also said the AfDB is implementing a program to support Africa’s youth in computer coding for employment.Launched in 2018, he said the bank’s ‘Youth in Africa Coding for Employment Programme,’ had already equipped over 80,000 young people with ICT skills to enhance their employability in this digital era.According to him: “Huge opportunities exist for the youth in agriculture. You might wonder why? Well, consider this: the size of the food and agribusiness market for Africa will be worth a whopping $ 1trn by 2030.“The millionaires and billionaires of Africa will no longer come from the oil and gas business, they will come from agriculture. Nobody drinks oil. Nobody smokes gas. But everybody eats food.“Nigeria must ensure that poverty does not become the heritage of its youth. Today, Nigeria’s youth are largely poor, unemployed, underemployed, and unhappy.“Majority of them are in the informal sector which accounts for 93 percent of all employment. The high level of youth unemployment is at the core of the massive wave of insecurity being witnessed in Nigeria.”

Akinwumi Adesina is president of the African Development Bank. Patrick Verkooijen is CEO of the Global Center on Adaptation.   After a dark 2020, a new year has brought new hope. In Africa, where up to 40 million more people were driven into extreme poverty and the continent experienced its first recession in 25 years, a brighter future beckons as the economy is forecast to return to growth this year.Africa now has an opportunity to reset its economic compass. To build back not just better, but greener. Particularly as the next crisis—climate change—is already upon us.Africa’s food systems must be made more resilient to future shocks such as floods, droughts, and disease. Urgent and sustainable increases in food production are needed to reduce reliance on food imports and reduce poverty, and this is where digital services come into play.With mobile phone ownership in Sub-Saharan Africa alone expected to reach half a billion this year, digital services offered via text messaging can reach even the most remote village. And at least one-fifth of these phones also have smart features, meaning they can connect to the internet.We can already see how digital services drive prosperity locally and nationally. In Uganda, SMS services that promote market price awareness have lifted the price farmers receive for bananas by 36 percent, beans by 16.5 percent, maize by 17 percent, and coffee by 19 percent. In Ghana, services that cut out the middleman have lifted the price for maize by 10 percent and groundnuts by 7 percent.But digital services don’t just raise farmgate prices, they are the gateway to farm loans, crop insurance, and greater economic security, which in turn enables farmers to increase their resilience to climate change—by experimenting with new, drought-resistant crops, for example, or innovative farming methods.Text messages with weather reports help farmers make better decisions about when and what to plant, and when to harvest.In Niger, a phone-based education program has improved crop diversity, with more farmers likely to grow the cash crop okra, while an advisory service in Ethiopia helped increase wheat production from one ton to three tons per hectare.The data footprints phone users create can also be analyzed to help assess risk when it comes to offering loans, making credit cheaper and more accessible.Phones and digital services also speed up the spread of information through social networks, helping farmers learn about new drought-resistant crops or services that can increase productivity. Free-to-use mobile phone-based app WeFarm, for example, has already helped more than 2.4 million farmers find certified suppliers of quality seeds at fair prices. They can also connect farmers to internet-based services.Examples of digital innovation abound, sometimes across borders. In Ghana, Kenya, and Nigeria, equipment-sharing platform Hello Tractor is helping farmers rent machinery by the day or even hour, while in Ethiopia, AfriScout, run by the non-government organization Project Concern International with the World Food Programme and the Ministry for Agriculture, provides satellite images of water supplies and crops every 10 days so problems can be spotted quickly to aid remedial action.Transforming food systems digitally has demonstrably excellent results: the African Development Bank, which has allocated over half of its climate financing to adaptation since 2019, has already helped 19 million farmers in 27 countries to lift yields by an average 60 percent through applying digital technology, for example.This is why the Global Center on Adaptation and the African Development Bank have launched the Africa Adaptation Acceleration Program (AAAP) to mobilize $25 billion to scale up and accelerate innovative climate-change adaptation across Africa.Once developed, the digital nature of these services often makes such projects easy to replicate elsewhere and scale, even across large rural areas with little existing infrastructure.Further, adaptation projects are proven to be highly cost-effective, often delivering value many times the original investment and so helping African economies grow faster and create many more much-needed jobs.This makes it imperative that the global resolve to rebuild economies in the wake of Covid-19 is harnessed in the most effective way. We must not simply replicate the mistakes of the past. We must build back stronger, with a more resilient and climate-smart focus.Funding and promoting disruptive business models in which digital technologies are embedded to increase productivity without using more land or more water will create a triple win: increased production, a more resilient climate and more empowered farmers.We have the means and the technical capability to put Africa well on the way to achieving food self-sufficiency and greater climate resilience. In doing so, we can help millions move out of food poverty. We must not squander this opportunity to create truly historic and lasting change.

Permit me to step aside this week from contextual reporting of the terrorism of the bandits and the hypocrisy of the crisis entrepreneurs in the land. Reason for the cross-over: It is expedient for us to study the essentials of the Africa Economic Outlook 2021 the African Development Bank (AfDB) launched virtually the other day.  It appears that there are so many features in the report for the governments and people of Africa to study and learn from at this moment. The deliverables from report and colloquium on the launchare quite didactic.The 2021 AEO highlights one of the most fundamental questions for Africa today: How can African countries regain growth after COVID-19? What hurdles must they clear to avoid debt burden? And what changes does this mean for the international debt architecture and for governance systems in Africa?Specifically, for those who haven’t read the economic outlook highlights, the 2021 edition focuses on debt resolution, governance, and growth in Africa. The opening chapter examines Africa’s growth performance and outlook amid the COVID–19 pandemic. The chapter emphasises policy options to mitigate the effects of the pandemic in the short, medium, and long terms. The second chapter explores the causes and consequences of Africa’s debt dynamics by showing how the changing structure and composition of debt create vulnerabilities. The third chapter takes stock of the challenges in the current global architecture for debt resolution and explores the link between governance and growth with an emphasis on proposed reforms to improve the processes of debt resolution, governance, and sustainable growth. Those managing debt and indeed duty bearers in Africa’s most populous country need to study this report very meticulously. According to the economic outlook in focus, “Africa is projected to recover in 2021 from its worst economic recession in half a century.” It may be gratifying to read that forecast at this time in Nigeria. It will be recalled that economic activity in Africa was constrained in 2020 by an unprecedented global pandemic caused by COVID–19. Real GDP in Africa is projected to grow by 3.4 percent in 2021, after contracting by 2.1 percent in 2020. This projected recovery from the worst recession in more than half a century will be underpinned by a resumption of tourism, a rebound in commodity prices, and the rollback of pandemic-induced restrictions. The outlook is, however, subject to great uncertainty from both external and domestic risks.On Debt Dynamics And Consequences, the analysis signposts some paralysis as the COVID–19 pandemic has caused a surge in government financing needs in Africa. Since the COVID–19 pandemic began in early 2020, governments have announced fiscal stimulus packages ranging in cost from about 0.02 percent of GDP in South Sudan to about 10.4 percent of GDP in South Africa. The AfDB estimates that African governments need additional gross financing of about $154 billion in 2020/21 to respond to the crisis. These fiscal stimulus packages have largely had immediate, direct implications for budgetary balances, borrowing needs, and debt levels.As reported in the third chapter, under “debt resolution and the nexus between governance and growth”, debt resolution in Africa has often been disorderly and protracted, with costly economic consequences.In the same vein, the economic consequences of sovereign debt restructuring are less severe in countries that act pre-emptively and collaboratively and in those countries where economic governance is stronger. However, the Heavily Indebted Poor Countries (HIPC) initiative took more than a decade to be implemented, and recent debt resolution in Africa has been delayed by long-lasting litigation with private and official creditors. “The absence of orderly and successful sovereign debt resolution, especially with private creditors, makes the prospects of debt distress worrisome for African economies”, the report indicates.So, AfDB asks countries to establish mechanism for debt restructuring. That is official from the newly named World’s Best Multilateral Financial Institution, AfDB.  At the launch of the 2021AEO, the  Bank (AfDB) asked governments on the continent to establish a financial stabilisation mechanism for debt restructuring plan.  Akinwumi Adesina, president of the AfDB, made the call for the mechanism at the launch of the bank’s 2021 edition of its annual African Economic Outlook. Debt restructuring is a process that allows a private, public or a sovereign entity facing cash flow problems and financial distress to reduce and renegotiate its delinquent debts to improve or restore liquidity so that it can continue its operations. Meanwhile, a debt becomes delinquent when payment is not made by the due date or the end of the “grace period” as established in a loan or repayment agreement. I hope Abuja is reading and studying this mechanism.Adesina noted that African governments need to consider establishing a collective mechanism, which would give Africa the fiscal space needed to deal with debts. According to Nigeria’s former Agriculture Minister, the process can be initiated by developing macroeconomic and fiscal policy reforms. His words: “It is high time that we set up a homegrown financial stability mechanism where we work together to mutualize our funds and ensure we avoid the spillover effects that come from global pandemics or any external shock. We must start by making sure that we carry out the macroeconomic policy reforms and the fiscal policy reforms that we need to get done…Africa is not looking for a free pass. We are just looking for an equitable way in which Africa’s fiscal space gets dealt with.”Adesina proposed a financial stabilisation mechanism as a solution that would allow African countries to agree on a set of convergent macroeconomic policies and principles and pool funds. He said this would allow Africa “deal with the cause of the illness and not always the symptoms.” The AfDB president added that the mechanism would allow countries to handle debt and re-engage in massive pro-growth investments that would help them to quickly recover from the COVID-19 pandemic. For instance, in a recent data, the Debt Management Office (DMO) said Nigeria expended $243 million on debt servicing alone from January to December 2020.There is, however, a glimmer of hope from the AFDB: The African Development Bank is to support African countries to produce required vaccines within the continent, in the fight against the COVID-19 pandemic. Adesina, the President of the Bank, confirmed the development while speaking on Africa’s Debt and Growth in an interview with CNN ahead of the launch of AfDB’s African Economic Outlook 2021. The promise: “We at AfDB have therefore decided that we are going to support Africa to have quality healthcare infrastructure and also make sure that it develops its own pharmaceutical capacity and also produce vaccines in Africa; not running from pillar to post.”The AfDB President noted that the issue of vaccine was a big problem and that the Africa has so far received a mere 1 per cent of the continent’s needs. His words: “You know so far 40.6 million vaccines have been delivered in Africa and people can’t even get a shot in the arm. That 40.6 million is only 1 percent of what we need; talk less of having 60 percent of herd immunity. So we are way off the mark on that.” The former AGRA chief emphasised the importance of Africa to have access to the vaccines and the need to have vaccine solidarity, pointing out that although those concerned are doing a great job, “the amounts are still in miniscule as far as we are concerned. We need to actually have global solidarity on this; but beyond that, there must also be vaccine justice, making sure that everybody has the vaccine.” Dr. Adesina warned against leaving Africa behind in the distribution of the vaccines. His words, “If we deal with this pandemic in one part of the world and don’t deal with other parts, we are going back to square one. So, absolutely we must make sure that we ramp up access to vaccine. Africa needs it in quantity, it needs it on time and it needs it on an affordable price.”Already, there are challenging economic situation across the continent leading to loss of jobs, more poverty and hunger. This has the tendency of worsening social, economic and political fragility of countries.According to the AfDB’s chief executive officer, “a lot of young people lost jobs, and so for us, it’s how do you build back, making sure you have economic resilience. Of course, doing that with climate resilience; also make sure that we can secure the health of the populations with health resilience. Now the political dynamics of this is very important because when young people can’t find jobs, it can really worsen social, economic and political fragility of countries.  And here is the thing, everything comes back to making sure Africa is supported at this time to meet its deficit. Adesina revealed: “We were looking for $154 billion last year – that was all. Developed countries were spending over $9 trillion, the G20; but Africa couldn’t just get $154 billion. There needs to be a total change in that, to make sure that Africa gets the resources to expand its fiscal space; and in particular the issue of debt, because you can’t really run up the hill with a backpack that is full of sand.”The AfDB boss also urged creditors to extend the period of debt repayment and forgiveness in such a way that the period of deferment continues to be helpful to African countries. This prescription can’t be discounted in that COVID-19 related spending has swollen many countries borrowing; and without more aid, 39 million Africans stand the risk of falling into extreme poverty this year. More than 30 million Africans are already in the extreme poverty bracket.  On the growth in Africa, Dr. Akinwunmi said, “We projected that Africa will grow back. We projected 3.4 percent back this year; but all that is conditional on two things: Access to vaccines and the issue of debts.The African Economic Outlook is the African Development Bank’s flagship annual publication. It provides economic data as well as analysis and recommendations for the continent’s economies. Each edition focuses on a contemporary theme. Our economic managers need to study the facts behind the figures – to show themselves approved at this time. Meanwhile, will the rich lenders listen to the Nobel laureate Joseph E. Stiglitz who also called for a comprehensive global plan to help countries cope with mounting debt that has been compounded by the COVID-19 pandemic? Stiglitz, a recipient of the Nobel Memorial Prize in Economic Sciences in 2001, who was speaking at the virtual launch of the 2021 African Economic Outlook report during a conversation with Bank President Dr. Adesina noted, that’s a question I’ve been very concerned with for a long time … You need debt restructuring, and that needs to be really high on the international agenda…Every country has bankruptcy laws but there’s no bankruptcy law for international debt. Remember when there’s too much debt, it’s as much the creditor’s problem as the debtor’s problem’, said Stiglitz, a professor at Columbia University, New York. That word is also enough for those who like to borrow for just consumption.

November 23 18:25 2018 Akinwunmi Adesina, president of the African Development Bank (AfDB), has become the first African to win the $1m Sunhak Peace Prize.Adesina clinched the prize alongside Waris Dirie, a 53-year-old world-class supermodel and anti-FGM activist, from Somali.The Sunhak Peace Prize committee announced the 2019 Laureates at the Cape Town International Convention Centre, South Africa on Thursday.Il Sik Hong, chairman of the Sunhak Peace Prize committee, stated that “the Sunhak Peace Prize was established based upon the vision of ‘One Family Under God. The 2019 Sunhak Peace Prize gives special attention to peace and human development in Africa.”“In order for us to build an era of peace and coexistence in the 21st century, we want to encourage continuous development in Africa,” Hong said.“Africa is a rising star and its growth will contribute global progress and development throughout the 21st century.”The committee acknowledged Adesina’s achievements in promoting good governance, which boosts Africa’s capacity to feed itself and transform its total economies for generating wealth for millions of rural and poor African farmers.Adesina has been a leader in agricultural innovation in Africa for over 30 years, bringing great improvement to Africa’s food security, contributing to Africa’s dynamic growth.Adesina pioneered major transformations in the agricultural field, including expanding rice production by introducing high yielding technologies, designing and implementing policies to support farmers’ access to technologies at scale.This increased the availability of credit for millions of smallholder farmers, attracting private investments for the agricultural sector, rooting out the corrupt elements in the fertilizer industry, and assisting in establishment of major agricultural policies for Africa’s green revolution.The “Africa Fertilizer Summit,” which he organized in 2006, was one of the largest high-level meetings in Africa’s history that had a focus on solving Africa’s food issues.During this summit, Adesina was instrumental in developing the “Abuja Declaration on Fertilizer for the African Green Revolution,” whereby the participants stated their commitment to the “eradication of hunger in Africa, by 2030.”Adesina worked with various banks and international NGOs in order to create an innovative financing system, providing loans to small farmers, providing a way for them to rise out of poverty.This move leveraged $100 million in loans and provided opportunities for small farmers to increase their agricultural productivity, and their income.As an “economic commander” of Africa, he promotes the “High 5 Strategy”, which includes: light up and power Africa, feed Africa, industrialize Africa, integrate Africa and improve the quality of life for the people of Africa.As a result of his work, the lives of millions of people throughout Africa have been improved.The Sunhak Peace Prize honors individuals and organizations who have made significant contributions to the peace and the welfare of the future generations.The Sunhak Peace Prize includes a cash prize totaling $1 million.The 2019 Sunhak Peace Prize Award Ceremony will take place in February, 2019 in Seoul, Korea.[Original News]

23 NOVEMBER 2018 The Sunhak Peace Prize Committee has selected the President of the African Development Bank, Akinwumi Adesina, as one of its 2019 laureates.As an agricultural economist, Mr Adesina, a former minister of agriculture in Nigeria, has been a leader in agricultural innovation for over 30 years.He has contributed greatly to food security in Africa, aimed at improving the lives of millions currently living in poverty, throughout the African continent.The Sunhak Committee acknowledges the former Nigerian minister\'s achievements in promoting good governance of Africa, which boosts Africa\'s capacity to feed itself and transform its total economies for generating wealth for millions of rural and poor African farmers.At the Cape Town International Convention Center, the Prize Committee announced that the 2019 Laureates for the Sunhak Peace Prize would be Waris Dirie, 53 year-old world-class supermodel and anti-FGM activist, and Mr Adesina, the 58 year-old president of the African Development Bank Group.Mr Adesina has been a leader in agricultural innovation in Africa for over 30 years, bringing great improvement to Africa\'s food security. contributing to Africa\'s dynamic growth. His leadership is building stepping-stones for Africa\'s dynamic growth.He pioneered major transformations in the agricultural field, including expanding rice production by introducing high yielding technologies, designing and implementing policies to support farmers\' access to technologies at scale, increasing the availability of credit for millions of smallholder farmers, attracting private investments for the agricultural sector, rooting out the corrupt elements in the fertilizer industry, and assisting in establishment of major agricultural policies for Africa\'s green revolution.The \"Africa Fertilizer Summit,\" which he organized in 2006, was one of the largest high-level meetings in Africa\'s history that had a focus on solving Africa\'s food issues. During this Summit, Dr. Adesina was instrumental in developing the \"Abuja Declaration on Fertilizer for the African Green Revolution,\" whereby the participants stated their commitment to the \"eradication of hunger in Africa, by 2030.\"Mr. Adesina worked with various banks and international NGOs in order to create an innovative financing system, providing loans to small farmers, providing a way for them to rise out of poverty. This move leveraged $100 million in loans and provided opportunities for small farmers to increase their agricultural productivity, and their income.Mr Adesina currently serves as the president of the African Development Bank Group which plays a central role in Africa\'s development.As an \"economic commander\" of Africa, he promotes the \"High 5 Strategy\" that include: light up and power Africa, feed Africa, industrialize Africa, integrate Africa and improve the quality of life for the people of Africa. As a result of his work, the lives of millions of people throughout Africa have been improved.The Chairman of the Sunhak Peace Prize Committee, Il Sik Hong, stated that \"the Sunhak Peace Prize was established based upon the vision of \"One Family Under God.\"The 2019 Sunhak Peace Prize gives special attention to peace and human development in Africa.\"Mr Hong added \"in order for us to build an era of peace and coexistence in the 21st century, we want to encourage continuous development in Africa. Africa is a rising star and its growth will contribute global progress and development throughout the 21st century.\"The Sunhak Peace Prize honours individuals and organizations who have made significant contributions to the peace and the welfare of the future generations. The Sunhak Peace Prize includes a cash prize totaling one million dollars. The 2019 Sunhak Peace Prize Award Ceremony will take place in February, 2019 in Seoul, Korea.[Original News]

The Sunhak Peace Prize Committee announced Laureates for the Sunhak Peace Prize for 2019 – Waris Dirie and Dr. Akinwumi Ayodeji Adesina.Waris Dirie, a human rights activist and super-model, is widely acclaimed for raising worldwide awareness of Female Genital Mutilation (FGM). As an agricultural economist, Dr. Akinwumi Adesina has been promoting Good Governance in Africa through agricultural innovation for over 30 years and greatly contributed to food security in Africa.Warisi Dirie was born into a nomad family and she was subjected to FGM at the age of 5. In 1997, she shared her experience to the world and was appointed as the Special Ambassador to the UN for the Elimination of FGM.In 2002, she established the Desert Flower Foundation and in 2003, her anti-FGM campaign led 15 African Union member countries to ratify the Maputo Protocol which promotes eradication of FGM. In 2012, the UN unanimously passed a resolution banning the practice of FGM, and the UN has set a goal to eliminate FGM by 2030.[Original News]

22 NOVEMBRE 2018Waris Dirie, a human rights activist and super-model, is widely acclaimed for raising worldwide awareness of Female Genital Mutilation (FGM). As an agricultural economist, Dr. Akinwumi Adesina has been promoting Good Governance in Africa through agricultural innovation for over 30 years and greatly contributed to food security in Africa.Warisi Dirie was born into a nomad family and she was subjected to FGM at the age of 5. In 1997, she shared her experience to the world and was appointed as the Special Ambassador to the UN for the Elimination of FGM.In 2002, she established the Desert Flower Foundation and in 2003, her anti-FGM campaign led 15 African Union member countries to ratify the Maputo Protocol which promotes eradication of FGM. In 2012, the UN unanimously passed a resolution banning the practice of FGM, and the UN has set a goal to eliminate FGM by 2030.Another laureate Dr. Akinwumi Adesina pioneered in expanding rice production, increasing the availability of credit for smallholder farmers, attracting private investments for the agricultural sector, rooting out the corrupt elements in the fertilizer industry, and establishing the major agricultural policies.For the 2006 Africa Fertilizer Summit, he was instrumental in developing the Abuja Declaration on Fertilizer for the African Green Revolution, stating eradication of hunger in Africa, by 2030.Dr. Akinwumi Adesina currently serves as the president of the African Development Bank Group, promoting the “High 5 Strategy”, which is improving lives of millions of people throughout Africa.Dr. Il Sik Hong, Chairman of the Sunhak Committee, stated that “the Sunhak Peace Prize was established based upon the vision of ‘One Family Under God’ and the Sunhak Peace Prize for 2019 gives special attention to human rights and human development in Africa.”The Sunhak Peace Prize honors individuals and organizations who have made significant contributions to the peace and the welfare of the future generations. The Sunhak Peace Prize includes a cash prize totaling one million US dollars and the Award Ceremony will take place in February, 2019 in Seoul, Korea.[Original News]

Published : Friday, November 23, 2018, 7:00 amCAPE TOWN, South Africa, Nov. 23, 2018 /PRNewswire/ Waris Dirie, a human rights activist and super-model, is widely acclaimed for raising worldwide awareness of Female Genital Mutilation (FGM). As an agricultural economist, Dr. Akinwumi Adesina has been promoting Good Governance in Africa through agricultural innovation for over 30 years and greatly contributed to food security in Africa.Waris Dirie, a human rights activist and super-model Warisi Dirie was born into a nomad family and she was subjected to FGM at the age of 5. In 1997, she shared her experience to the world and was appointed as the Special Ambassador to the UN for the Elimination of FGM.In 2002, she established the Desert Flower Foundation and in 2003, her anti-FGM campaign led 15 African Union member countries to ratify the Maputo Protocol which promotes eradication of FGM. In 2012, the UN unanimously passed a resolution banning the practice of FGM, and the UN has set a goal to eliminate FGM by 2030.Another laureate Dr. Akinwumi Adesina pioneered in expanding rice production, increasing the availability of credit for smallholder farmers, attracting private investments for the agricultural sector, rooting out the corrupt elements in the fertilizer industry, and establishing the major agricultural policies.Dr. Akinwumi Adesina, the President of the African Development Bank Group For the 2006 Africa Fertilizer Summit, he was instrumental in developing the Abuja Declaration on Fertilizer for the African Green Revolution, stating eradication of hunger in Africa, by 2030.Dr. Akinwumi Adesina currently serves as the president of the African Development Bank Group, promoting the \"High 5 Strategy\", which is improving lives of millions of people throughout Africa.Dr. Il Sik Hong, Chairman of the Sunhak Committee, stated that \"the Sunhak Peace Prize was established based upon the vision of \'One Family Under God\' and the Sunhak Peace Prize for 2019 gives special attention to human rights and human development in Africa.\"The Sunhak Peace Prize honors individuals and organizations who have made significant contributions to the peace and the welfare of the future generations. The Sunhak Peace Prize includes a cash prize totaling one million US dollars and the Award Ceremony will take place in February, 2019 in Seoul, Korea.[Original News]

22 Novembre 2018 Waris Dirie, a human rights activist and super-model, is widely acclaimed for raising worldwide awareness of Female Genital Mutilation (FGM). As an agricultural economist, Dr. Akinwumi Adesina has been promoting Good Governance in Africa through agricultural innovation for over 30 years and greatly contributed to food security in Africa.Warisi Dirie was born into a nomad family and she was subjected to FGM at the age of 5. In 1997, she shared her experience to the world and was appointed as the Special Ambassador to the UN for the Elimination of FGM.In 2002, she established the Desert Flower Foundation and in 2003, her anti-FGM campaign led 15 African Union member countries to ratify the Maputo Protocol which promotes eradication of FGM. In 2012, the UN unanimously passed a resolution banning the practice of FGM, and the UN has set a goal to eliminate FGM by 2030.Another laureate Dr. Akinwumi Adesina pioneered in expanding rice production, increasing the availability of credit for smallholder farmers, attracting private investments for the agricultural sector, rooting out the corrupt elements in the fertilizer industry, and establishing the major agricultural policies.For the 2006 Africa Fertilizer Summit, he was instrumental in developing the Abuja Declaration on Fertilizer for the African Green Revolution, stating eradication of hunger in Africa, by 2030.Dr. Akinwumi Adesina currently serves as the president of the African Development Bank Group, promoting the \"High 5 Strategy\", which is improving lives of millions of people throughout Africa.Dr. Il Sik Hong, Chairman of the Sunhak Committee, stated that \"the Sunhak Peace Prize was established based upon the vision of \'One Family Under God\' and the Sunhak Peace Prize for 2019 gives special attention to human rights and human development in Africa.\"The Sunhak Peace Prize honors individuals and organizations who have made significant contributions to the peace and the welfare of the future generations. The Sunhak Peace Prize includes a cash prize totaling one million US dollars and the Award Ceremony will take place in February, 2019 in Seoul, Korea.Photo: https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/785992/Waris_Dirie.jpgPhoto: https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/785993/Dr_Akinwumi_Adesina.jpg [Original News]

Pubblicato il: 22/11/2018 18:01CAPE TOWN, South Africa, Nov. 22, 2018/PRNewswire/ -- The Sunhak Peace Prize Committee announced Laureates for the Sunhak Peace Prize for 2019 - Waris Dirie and Dr. Akinwumi Ayodeji Adesina. Waris Dirie, a human rights activist and super-model, is widely acclaimed for raising worldwide awareness of Female Genital Mutilation (FGM). As an agricultural economist, Dr. Akinwumi Adesina has been promoting Good Governance in Africa through agricultural innovation for over 30 years and greatly contributed to food security in Africa.Warisi Dirie was born into a nomad family and she was subjected to FGM at the age of 5. In 1997, she shared her experience to the world and was appointed as the Special Ambassador to the UN for the Elimination of FGM.In 2002, she established the Desert Flower Foundation and in 2003, her anti-FGM campaign led 15 African Union member countries to ratify the Maputo Protocol which promotes eradication of FGM. In 2012, the UN unanimously passed a resolution banning the practice of FGM, and the UN has set a goal to eliminate FGM by 2030.Another laureate Dr. Akinwumi Adesina pioneered in expanding rice production, increasing the availability of credit for smallholder farmers, attracting private investments for the agricultural sector, rooting out the corrupt elements in the fertilizer industry, and establishing the major agricultural policies.For the 2006 Africa Fertilizer Summit, he was instrumental in developing the Abuja Declaration on Fertilizer for the African Green Revolution, stating eradication of hunger in Africa, by 2030.Dr. Akinwumi Adesina currently serves as the president of the African Development Bank Group, promoting the \"High 5 Strategy\", which is improving lives of millions of people throughout Africa.Dr. Il Sik Hong, Chairman of the Sunhak Committee, stated that \"the Sunhak Peace Prize was established based upon the vision of \'One Family Under God\' and the Sunhak Peace Prize for 2019 gives special attention to human rights and human development in Africa.\"The Sunhak Peace Prize honors individuals and organizations who have made significant contributions to the peace and the welfare of the future generations. The Sunhak Peace Prize includes a cash prize totaling one million US dollars and the Award Ceremony will take place in February, 2019 in Seoul, Korea.[Original News]

PR NewswireCAPE TOWN, South Africa, Nov. 22, 2018Waris Dirie, a human rights activist and super-model, is widely acclaimed for raising worldwide awareness of Female Genital Mutilation (FGM). As an agricultural economist, Dr. Akinwumi Adesina has been promoting Good Governance in Africa through agricultural innovation for over 30 years and greatly contributed to food security in Africa.Photo - https://photos.prnasia.com/prnh/20181116/2301301-1-aWarisi Dirie was born into a nomad family and she was subjected to FGM at the age of 5. In 1997, she shared her experience to the world and was appointed as the Special Ambassador to the UN for the Elimination of FGM.In 2002, she established the Desert Flower Foundation and in 2003, her anti-FGM campaign led 15 African Union member countries to ratify the Maputo Protocol which promotes eradication of FGM. In 2012, the UN unanimously passed a resolution banning the practice of FGM, and the UN has set a goal to eliminate FGM by 2030.Another laureate Dr. Akinwumi Adesina pioneered in expanding rice production, increasing the availability of credit for smallholder farmers, attracting private investments for the agricultural sector, rooting out the corrupt elements in the fertilizer industry, and establishing the major agricultural policies.Photo - https://photos.prnasia.com/prnh/20181116/2301301-1-bFor the 2006 Africa Fertilizer Summit, he was instrumental in developing the Abuja Declaration on Fertilizer for the African Green Revolution, stating eradication of hunger in Africa, by 2030.Dr. Akinwumi Adesina currently serves as the president of the African Development Bank Group, promoting the \"High 5 Strategy\", which is improving lives of millions of people throughout Africa.Dr. Il Sik Hong, Chairman of the Sunhak Committee, stated that \"the Sunhak Peace Prize was established based upon the vision of \'One Family Under God\' and the Sunhak Peace Prize for 2019 gives special attention to human rights and human development in Africa.\"The Sunhak Peace Prize honors individuals and organizations who have made significant contributions to the peace and the welfare of the future generations. The Sunhak Peace Prize includes a cash prize totaling one million US dollars and the Award Ceremony will take place in February, 2019 in Seoul, Korea.[Original News]

PR NewswireCAPE TOWN, South Africa, Nov. 22, 2018Waris Dirie, a human rights activist and super-model, is widely acclaimed for raising worldwide awareness of Female Genital Mutilation (FGM). As an agricultural economist, Dr. Akinwumi Adesina has been promoting Good Governance in Africa through agricultural innovation for over 30 years and greatly contributed to food security in Africa.Warisi Dirie was born into a nomad family and she was subjected to FGM at the age of 5. In 1997, she shared her experience to the world and was appointed as the Special Ambassador to the UN for the Elimination of FGM.In 2002, she established the Desert Flower Foundation and in 2003, her anti-FGM campaign led 15 African Union member countries to ratify the Maputo Protocol which promotes eradication of FGM. In 2012, the UN unanimously passed a resolution banning the practice of FGM, and the UN has set a goal to eliminate FGM by 2030.Another laureate Dr. Akinwumi Adesina pioneered in expanding rice production, increasing the availability of credit for smallholder farmers, attracting private investments for the agricultural sector, rooting out the corrupt elements in the fertilizer industry, and establishing the major agricultural policies.For the 2006 Africa Fertilizer Summit, he was instrumental in developing the Abuja Declaration on Fertilizer for the African Green Revolution, stating eradication of hunger in Africa, by 2030.Dr. Akinwumi Adesina currently serves as the president of the African Development Bank Group, promoting the \"High 5 Strategy\", which is improving lives of millions of people throughout Africa.Dr. Il Sik Hong, Chairman of the Sunhak Committee, stated that \"the Sunhak Peace Prize was established based upon the vision of \'One Family Under God\' and the Sunhak Peace Prize for 2019 gives special attention to human rights and human development in Africa.\"The Sunhak Peace Prize honors individuals and organizations who have made significant contributions to the peace and the welfare of the future generations. The Sunhak Peace Prize includes a cash prize totaling one million US dollars and the Award Ceremony will take place in February, 2019 in Seoul, Korea.[Original News]

Nov 23, 2018CAPE TOWN, South Africa, Nov. 23, 2018 /PRNewswire/ Waris Dirie, a human rights activist and super-model, is widely acclaimed for raising worldwide awareness of Female Genital Mutilation (FGM). As an agricultural economist, Dr. Akinwumi Adesina has been promoting Good Governance in Africa through agricultural innovation for over 30 years and greatly contributed to food security in Africa. Warisi Dirie was born into a nomad family and she was subjected to FGM at the age of 5. In 1997, she shared her experience to the world and was appointed as the Special Ambassador to the UN for the Elimination of FGM.In 2002, she established the Desert Flower Foundation and in 2003, her anti-FGM campaign led 15 African Union member countries to ratify the Maputo Protocol which promotes eradication of FGM. In 2012, the UN unanimously passed a resolution banning the practice of FGM, and the UN has set a goal to eliminate FGM by 2030.Another laureate Dr. Akinwumi Adesina pioneered in expanding rice production, increasing the availability of credit for smallholder farmers, attracting private investments for the agricultural sector, rooting out the corrupt elements in the fertilizer industry, and establishing the major agricultural policies. For the 2006 Africa Fertilizer Summit, he was instrumental in developing the Abuja Declaration on Fertilizer for the African Green Revolution, stating eradication of hunger in Africa, by 2030.Dr. Akinwumi Adesina currently serves as the president of the African Development Bank Group, promoting the \"High 5 Strategy\", which is improving lives of millions of people throughout Africa.Dr. Il Sik Hong, Chairman of the Sunhak Committee, stated that \"the Sunhak Peace Prize was established based upon the vision of \'One Family Under God\' and the Sunhak Peace Prize for 2019 gives special attention to human rights and human development in Africa.\"The Sunhak Peace Prize honors individuals and organizations who have made significant contributions to the peace and the welfare of the future generations. The Sunhak Peace Prize includes a cash prize totaling one million US dollars and the Award Ceremony will take place on February, 2019 in Seoul, Korea.[Original News]

CAPE TOWN, South Africa, Nov. 22, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- The Sunhak Peace Prize Committee announced Laureates for the Sunhak Peace Prize for 2019 - Waris Dirie and Dr. Akinwumi Ayodeji Adesina.Waris Dirie, a human rights activist and super-model, is widely acclaimed for raising worldwide awareness of Female Genital Mutilation (FGM). As an agricultural economist, Dr. Akinwumi Adesina has been promoting Good Governance in Africa through agricultural innovation for over 30 years and greatly contributed to food security in Africa.https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/785992/Waris_Dirie.jpg [https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/785992/Waris_Dirie.jpg]Warisi Dirie was born into a nomad family and she was subjected to FGM at the age of 5. In 1997, she shared her experience to the world and was appointed as the Special Ambassador to the UN for the Elimination of FGM.In 2002, she established the Desert Flower Foundation and in 2003, her anti-FGM campaign led 15 African Union member countries to ratify the Maputo Protocol which promotes eradication of FGM. In 2012, the UN unanimously passed a resolution banning the practice of FGM, and the UN has set a goal to eliminate FGM by 2030.Another laureate Dr. Akinwumi Adesina pioneered in expanding rice production, increasing the availability of credit for smallholder farmers, attracting private investments for the agricultural sector, rooting out the corrupt elements in the fertilizer industry, and establishing the major agricultural policies.https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/785993/Dr_Akinwumi_Adesina.jpg [https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/785993/Dr_Akinwumi_Adesina.jpg]For the 2006 Africa Fertilizer Summit, he was instrumental in developing the Abuja Declaration on Fertilizer for the African Green Revolution, stating eradication of hunger in Africa, by 2030.Dr. Akinwumi Adesina currently serves as the president of the African Development Bank Group, promoting the \"High 5 Strategy\", which is improving lives of millions of people throughout Africa.Dr. Il Sik Hong, Chairman of the Sunhak Committee, stated that \"the Sunhak Peace Prize was established based upon the vision of \'One Family Under God\' and the Sunhak Peace Prize for 2019 gives special attention to human rights and human development in Africa.\"The Sunhak Peace Prize honors individuals and organizations who have made significant contributions to the peace and the welfare of the future generations. The Sunhak Peace Prize includes a cash prize totaling one million US dollars and the Award Ceremony will take place in February, 2019 in Seoul, Korea.[Original News]

As an agricultural economist, Dr. Akinwumi Adesina has been a leader in agricultural innovation for over 30 years. He has contributed greatly to food security in Africa, aimed at improving the lives of millions currently living in poverty, throughout the African continent. The Sunhak Committee acknowledges Dr. Akinwumi Adesina’s achievements in promoting Good Governance of Africa, which boosts Africa’s Growth. [Original News]

Alwihda Info | Par APO - 22 Novembre 2018 modifié le 1 Janvier 1970As an agricultural economist, Dr. Akinwumi Adesina has been a leader in agricultural innovation for over 30 years. He has contributed greatly to food security in Africa, aimed at improving the lives of millions currently living in poverty, throughout the African continent. The Sunhak Committee acknowledges Dr. Akinwumi Adesina’s achievements in promoting Good Governance of […]As an agricultural economist, Dr. Akinwumi Adesina has been a leader in agricultural innovation for over 30 year.[Original News]

(CAPE TOWN, South Africa, Nov. 23, 2018 PRNewswire=연합뉴스) The Sunhak Peace Prize Committee announced Laureates for the Sunhak Peace Prize for 2019 - Waris Dirie and Dr. Akinwumi Ayodeji Adesina. Waris Dirie, a human rights activist and super-model, is widely acclaimed for raising worldwide awareness of Female Genital Mutilation (FGM). As an agricultural economist, Dr. Akinwumi Adesina has been promoting Good Governance in Africa through agricultural innovation for over 30 years and greatly contributed to food security in Africa. Warisi Dirie was born into a nomad family and she was subjected to FGM at the age of 5. In 1997, she shared her experience to the world and was appointed as the Special Ambassador to the UN for the Elimination of FGM. In 2002, she established the Desert Flower Foundation and in 2003, her anti-FGM campaign led 15 African Union member countries to ratify the Maputo Protocol which promotes eradication of FGM. In 2012, the UN unanimously passed a resolution banning the practice of FGM, and the UN has set a goal to eliminate FGM by 2030. Another laureate Dr. Akinwumi Adesina pioneered in expanding rice production, increasing the availability of credit for smallholder farmers, attracting private investments for the agricultural sector, rooting out the corrupt elements in the fertilizer industry, and establishing the major agricultural policies. For the 2006 Africa Fertilizer Summit, he was instrumental in developing the Abuja Declaration on Fertilizer for the African Green Revolution, stating eradication of hunger in Africa, by 2030. Dr. Akinwumi Adesina currently serves as the president of the African Development Bank Group, promoting the \"High 5 Strategy\", which is improving lives of millions of people throughout Africa. Dr. Il Sik Hong, Chairman of the Sunhak Committee, stated that \"the Sunhak Peace Prize was established based upon the vision of \'One Family Under God\' and the Sunhak Peace Prize for 2019 gives special attention to human rights and human development in Africa.\" The Sunhak Peace Prize honors individuals and organizations who have made significant contributions to the peace and the welfare of the future generations. The Sunhak Peace Prize includes a cash prize totaling one million US dollars and the Award Ceremony will take place in February, 2019 in Seoul, Korea.Photo - https://photos.prnasia.com/prnh/20181116/2301301-1-aWaris Dirie, a human rights activist and super-model Photo - https://photos.prnasia.com/prnh/20181116/2301301-1-bDr. Akinwumi Adesina, the President of the African Development Bank Group Source: The Sunhak Peace Prize Committee[Original News]

Akinwumi Adesina, President, African Development Bank Photo: AfDBNovember 23, 2018The Sunhak Peace Prize Committee has selected the President of the African Development Bank, Akinwumi Adesina, as one of its 2019 laureates.As an agricultural economist, Mr Adesina, a former minister of agriculture in Nigeria, has been a leader in agricultural innovation for over 30 years.He has contributed greatly to food security in Africa, aimed at improving the lives of millions currently living in poverty, throughout the African continent.The Sunhak Committee acknowledges the former Nigerian minister’s achievements in promoting good governance of Africa, which boosts Africa’s capacity to feed itself and transform its total economies for generating wealth for millions of rural and poor African farmers.At the Cape Town International Convention Center, the Prize Committee announced that the 2019 Laureates for the Sunhak Peace Prize would be Waris Dirie, 53 year-old world-class supermodel and anti-FGM activist, and Mr Adesina, the 58 year-old president of the African Development Bank Group.Mr Adesina has been a leader in agricultural innovation in Africa for over 30 years, bringing great improvement to Africa’s food security. contributing to Africa’s dynamic growth. His leadership is building stepping-stones for Africa’s dynamic growth.He pioneered major transformations in the agricultural field, including expanding rice production by introducing high yielding technologies, designing and implementing policies to support farmers’ access to technologies at scale, increasing the availability of credit for millions of smallholder farmers, attracting private investments for the agricultural sector, rooting out the corrupt elements in the fertilizer industry, and assisting in establishment of major agricultural policies for Africa’s green revolution.The “Africa Fertilizer Summit,” which he organized in 2006, was one of the largest high-level meetings in Africa’s history that had a focus on solving Africa’s food issues. During this Summit, Dr. Adesina was instrumental in developing the “Abuja Declaration on Fertilizer for the African Green Revolution,” whereby the participants stated their commitment to the “eradication of hunger in Africa, by 2030.”Mr. Adesina worked with various banks and international NGOs in order to create an innovative financing system, providing loans to small farmers, providing a way for them to rise out of poverty. This move leveraged $100 million in loans and provided opportunities for small farmers to increase their agricultural productivity, and their income.Mr Adesina currently serves as the president of the African Development Bank Group which plays a central role in Africa’s development.As an “economic commander” of Africa, he promotes the “High 5 Strategy” that include: light up and power Africa, feed Africa, industrialize Africa, integrate Africa and improve the quality of life for the people of Africa. As a result of his work, the lives of millions of people throughout Africa have been improved.The Chairman of the Sunhak Peace Prize Committee, Il Sik Hong, stated that “the Sunhak Peace Prize was established based upon the vision of “One Family Under God.”The 2019 Sunhak Peace Prize gives special attention to peace and human development in Africa.”Mr Hong added “in order for us to build an era of peace and coexistence in the 21st century, we want to encourage continuous development in Africa. Africa is a rising star and its growth will contribute global progress and development throughout the 21st century.”The Sunhak Peace Prize honours individuals and organizations who have made significant contributions to the peace and the welfare of the future generations. The Sunhak Peace Prize includes a cash prize totaling one million dollars. The 2019 Sunhak Peace Prize Award Ceremony will take place in February, 2019 in Seoul, Korea.[Original News]

Akinwumi A. Adesina: President of the African Development Bank, committed to the eradication of poverty through agricultural innovation, and promoting Good Governance through the works of developing Africa’s economy.As an agricultural economist, Dr. Akinwumi Adesina has been a leader in agricultural innovation for over 30 years. He has contributed greatly to food security in Africa, aimed at improving the lives of millions currently living in poverty, throughout the African continent. The Sunhak Committee acknowledges Dr. Akinwumi Adesina’s achievements in promoting Good Governance of Africa, which boosts Africa’s capacity to feed itself and transform its total economies for generating wealth for millions of rural and poor African farmers.At the Cape Town International Convention Center, the Sunhak Peace Prize Committee announced that the 2019 Laureates for the Sunhak Peace Prize would be Waris Dirie, 53 year-old world-class supermodel and anti-FGM activist, and Dr. Akinwumi Ayodeji Adesina, 58 year-old president of the African Development Bank Group.Dr. Akinwumi Adesina has been a leader in agricultural innovation in Africa for over 30 years, bringing great improvement to Africa’s food security. contributing to Africa’s dynamic growth. His leadership is building stepping-stones for Africa’s dynamic growth.Dr. Akinwumi Adesina pioneered major transformations in the agricultural field, including expanding rice production by introducing high yielding technologies, designing and implementing policies to support farmers’ access to technologies at scale, increasing the availability of credit for millions of smallholder farmers, attracting private investments for the agricultural sector, rooting out the corrupt elements in the fertilizer industry, and assisting in establishment of major agricultural policies for Africa’s green revolution.The “Africa Fertilizer Summit,” which he organized in 2006, was one of the largest high-level meetings in Africa’s history that had a focus on solving Africa’s food issues. During this Summit, Dr. Adesina was instrumental in developing the “Abuja Declaration on Fertilizer for the African Green Revolution,” whereby the participants stated their commitment to the “eradication of hunger in Africa, by 2030.”Dr. Adesina worked with various banks and international NGOs in order to create an innovative financing system, providing loans to small farmers, providing a way for them to rise out of poverty. This move leveraged $100 million in loans and provided opportunities for small farmers to increase their agricultural productivity, and their income.Dr. Akinwumi Adesina currently serves as the president of the African Development Bank Group which plays a central role in Africa’s development. As an “economic commander” of Africa, he promotes the “High 5 Strategy” that include: light up and power Africa, feed Africa, industrialize Africa, integrate Africa and improve the quality of life for the people of Africa. As a result of his work, the lives of millions of people throughout Africa have been improved.Chairman of the Sunhak Peace Prize Committee, Dr. Il Sik Hong, stated that “the Sunhak Peace Prize was established based upon the vision of “One Family Under God.” The 2019 Sunhak Peace Prize gives special attention to peace and human development in Africa.”Dr. Hong added “in order for us to build an era of peace and coexistence in the 21st century, we want to encourage continuous development in Africa. Africa is a rising star and its growth will contribute global progress and development throughout the 21stcentury.”The Sunhak Peace Prize honors individuals and organizations who have made significant contributions to the peace and the welfare of the future generations. The Sunhak Peace Prize includes a cash prize totaling one million dollars. The 2019 Sunhak Peace Prize Award Ceremony will take place in February, 2019 in Seoul, Korea.

Nigeria’s former Minister of Agriculture and President of the African Development Bank (AfDB), Dr Akinwumi Adesina, and Human Rights Activist, Waris Dirie have bagged the 2019 Sunhak Peace Prize Award.The Laureate Announcement was made known today, Thursday, in Cape Town, South Africa.The 53-year-old Adesina is being honoured for his commitment to the eradication of poverty through agricultural innovation, and promoting Good Governance through the works of developing Africa’s economy while the 58-year-old Waris Dirie, a human rights activist and super-model recognized across the globe, is being honoured for her work to eliminate the practice of Female Genital Mutilation (FGM).“As an agricultural economist, Dr Akinwumi Adesina has been a leader in agricultural innovation for over 30 years. He has contributed greatly to food security in Africa, aimed at improving the lives of millions currently living in poverty, throughout the African continent. The Sunhak Committee acknowledges Dr Akinwumi Adesina’s achievements in promoting Good Governance through the works of improving Africa’s economies and lifting millions of rural and poor farmers out of poverty.“Waris Dirie is widely acclaimed for raising awareness throughout the world, about the tragic practice which is still prevalent in some parts of the world, Female Genital Mutilation (FGM). The Sunhak Peace Prize Committee selected Waris Dirie in recognition of her tireless advocacy for the rights of girls and women, and her call for a worldwide resolution calling for the eradication of FGM, thereby protecting girls who are at the risk of FGM,” Sunhak said.The Sunhak Peace Prize Committee added, that “both laureates have made a significant contribution to improving the quality of life of the most vulnerable in Africa.”“The Sunhak Peace Prize Committee recognizes the immense importance of Africa, observes that Africa is undergoing rapid change and development, while also facing challenges. These Laureates have made dramatic contributions to Africa’s growth and development,” they added.Warisi Dirie was born into a goat-herding nomad family in Somalia. She was subjected to female circumcision at the age of 5. In 1997, when her fashion career was at its peak, as a world-class supermodel, she shared her experience with the world. She became a voice for the voiceless. Her story shocked and at the same time enlightened people around the world about the tragic reality of FGM.This brave start led her to become a human rights activist to end the barbaric practice that is thriving in Africa. She was then appointed as a first Special Ambassador to the United Nations for the Elimination of Female Genital Mutilation in 1997. Since then, she has been putting tireless efforts in anti-FGM Campaign, upholding the rights of women and girls.As a result of her efforts, 15 African Union member-countries ratified the “Maputo Protocol” in 2003, which lists FGM as a harmful practice that must be ended. In 2012, the United Nations General Assembly unanimously passed a resolution banning the practice of FGM, and the UN has set a goal to eliminate FGM by 2030. This innovative milestone saved the lives of millions of girls who were at the risk the violent practice.According to the World Health Organization (WHO), over 200 million girls and women have been affected by FGM, which is prevalent in more than 30 countries, including parts of Africa and the Middle East. Moreover, the practice threatens the lives of millions of girls. Also, due to the increase of the immigration rates, countries in Europe, the USA and Asia are affected by FGM practices. This barbaric practice is a crime and against humanity, which often causes infertility, problems with urination, high blood loss, infections and in some cases even death.In 2013, Waris Dirie’s Desert Flower Foundation partnered with Waldfriede hospital and started the first Desert Flower Center to provide a comprehensive cure for victims of FGM. In 2014, Desert Flower Center started Training Center to provide FGM reconstructive surgery education to doctors and obstetricians, these centers provide reconstructive surgeries for the victims of FGM. In addition, she is at the forefront in helping victims of FGM improve their lives through “basic literacy education” and “career education.” Recently, she opened an elementary school in Sierra Leone, and launched companies in Ethiopia and Kenya to provide employment to thousands.Dr Adesina was born on February 6, 1960. Before his appointment as minister in 2010, he was Vice President of Policy and Partnerships for the Alliance for a Green Revolution in Africa. He has been a leader in agricultural innovation in Africa for over 30 years, bringing significant improvements to Africa’s food security. His leadership is building stepping-stones for Africa’s dynamic growth. He is the eighth president of the AfDB.He pioneered major transformations in the agricultural field, including expanding rice production by introducing high yielding technologies, designing and implementing policies to support farmers’ access to technologies at scale, increasing the availability of credit for millions of smallholder farmers, attracting private investments for the agricultural sector, rooting out the corrupt elements in the fertilizer industry, and assisting in establishment of major agricultural policies for Africa’s green revolution.The “Africa Fertilizer Summit,” which he organized in 2006, was one of the largest high-level meetings in history that had a focus on solving Africa’s food issues. During this Summit, Dr. Adesina was instrumental in developing the “Abuja Declaration on Fertilizer for the African Green Revolution,” whereby the participants stated their commitment to the “eradication of hunger in Africa, by 2030.”Dr Adesina worked with various banks and international NGOs in order to create an innovative financing system, providing loans to smallholder farmers, providing a way for them to rise out of poverty. This move leveraged $100 million in loans and provided opportunities for smallholder farmers to increase their agricultural productivity, and their income.He currently serves as the president of the African Development Bank Group which plays a central role in Africa’s development. As an “economic commander” of Africa, he promotes the “High 5 Strategy” that include: light up and power Africa, feed Africa, industrialize Africa, integrate Africa and improve the quality of life for the people of Africa. As a result of his work, the lives of millions of people throughout Africa have been improved.Chairman of the Sunhak Peace Prize Committee, Dr Il Sik Hong, stated that “the Sunhak Peace Prize was established based upon the vision of ‘One Family Under God.’ The 2019 Sunhak Peace Prize gives special attention to peace and human development in Africa.”Dr Hong added “in order for us to build an era of peace and coexistence in the 21st century, we want to encourage continuous development in Africa. Africa is a rising star and its growth will contribute to global progress and development throughout the 21st century.”The Sunhak Peace Prize honours individuals and organizations who have made significant contributions to the peace and the welfare of the future generations. The Sunhak Peace Prize includes a cash prize totaling one million dollars. The 2019 Sunhak Peace Prize Award Ceremony will take place in February, 2019 in Seoul, Korea.​

As an agricultural economist, Dr. Akinwumi Adesina has been a leader in agricultural innovation for over 30 years. He has contributed greatly to food security in Africa, aimed at improving the lives of millions currently living in poverty, throughout the African continent. The Sunhak Committee acknowledges Dr. Akinwumi Adesina’s achievements in promoting Good Governance of Africa, which boosts Africa’s capacity to feed itself and transform its total economies for generating wealth for millions of rural and poor African farmers.At the Cape Town International Convention Center, the Sunhak Peace Prize Committee announced that the 2019 Laureates for the Sunhak Peace Prize would be Waris Dirie, 53 year-old world-class supermodel and anti-FGM activist, and Dr. Akinwumi Ayodeji Adesina, 58 year-old president of the African Development Bank Group.Dr. Akinwumi Adesina has been a leader in agricultural innovation in Africa for over 30 years, bringing great improvement to Africa’s food security. contributing to Africa’s dynamic growth. His leadership is building stepping-stones for Africa’s dynamic growth.Dr. Akinwumi Adesina pioneered major transformations in the agricultural field, including expanding rice production by introducing high yielding technologies, designing and implementing policies to support farmers’ access to technologies at scale, increasing the availability of credit for millions of smallholder farmers, attracting private investments for the agricultural sector, rooting out the corrupt elements in the fertilizer industry, and assisting in establishment of major agricultural policies for Africa’s green revolution.The “Africa Fertilizer Summit,” which he organized in 2006, was one of the largest high-level meetings in Africa’s history that had a focus on solving Africa’s food issues. During this Summit, Dr. Adesina was instrumental in developing the “Abuja Declaration on Fertilizer for the African Green Revolution,” whereby the participants stated their commitment to the “eradication of hunger in Africa, by 2030.”Dr. Adesina worked with various banks and international NGOs in order to create an innovative financing system, providing loans to small farmers, providing a way for them to rise out of poverty. This move leveraged $100 million in loans and provided opportunities for small farmers to increase their agricultural productivity, and their income.Dr. Akinwumi Adesina currently serves as the president of the African Development Bank Group which plays a central role in Africa’s development. As an “economic commander” of Africa, he promotes the “High 5 Strategy” that include: light up and power Africa, feed Africa, industrialize Africa, integrate Africa and improve the quality of life for the people of Africa. As a result of his work, the lives of millions of people throughout Africa have been improved.Chairman of the Sunhak Peace Prize Committee, Dr. Il Sik Hong, stated that “the Sunhak Peace Prize was established based upon the vision of “One Family Under God.” The 2019 Sunhak Peace Prize gives special attention to peace and human development in Africa.”Dr. Hong added “in order for us to build an era of peace and coexistence in the 21st century, we want to encourage continuous development in Africa. Africa is a rising star and its growth will contribute global progress and development throughout the 21st century.”The Sunhak Peace Prize honors individuals and organizations who have made significant contributions to the peace and the welfare of the future generations. The Sunhak Peace Prize includes a cash prize totaling one million dollars. The 2019 Sunhak Peace Prize Award Ceremony will take place in February, 2019 in Seoul, Korea.

CAPE TOWN, South Africa, Nov. 22, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- The Sunhak Peace Prize Committee announced Laureates for the Sunhak Peace Prize for 2019 - Waris Dirie and Dr. Akinwumi Ayodeji Adesina. Waris Dirie, a human rights activist and super-model, is widely acclaimed for raising worldwide awareness of Female Genital Mutilation (FGM).As an agricultural economist, Dr. Akinwumi Adesina has been promoting Good Governance in Africa through agricultural innovation for over 30 years and greatly contributed to food security in Africa. Waris Dirie was born into a nomad family and she was subjected to FGM at the age of 5. In 1997, she shared her experience with the world and was appointed as the Special Ambassador to the UN for the Elimination of FGM. In 2002, she established the Desert Flower Foundation and in 2003, her anti-FGM campaign led 15 African Union member countries to ratify the Maputo Protocol which promotes the eradication of FGM. In 2012, the UN unanimously passed a resolution banning the practice of FGM, and the UN has set a goal to eliminate FGM by 2030.Another laureate Dr. Akinwumi Adesina pioneered in expanding rice production, increasing the availability of credit for smallholder farmers, attracting private investments for the agricultural sector, rooting out the corrupt elements in the fertilizer industry, and establishing the major agricultural policies.For the 2006 Africa Fertilizer Summit, he was instrumental in developing the Abuja Declaration on Fertilizer for the African Green Revolution, stating eradication of hunger in Africa, by 2030.Dr. Akinwumi Adesina currently serves as the president of the African Development Bank Group, promoting the \"High 5 Strategy\", which is improving the lives of millions of people throughout Africa.Dr. Il Sik Hong, Chairman of the Sunhak Committee, stated that \"the Sunhak Peace Prize was established based upon the vision of \'One Family Under God\' and the Sunhak Peace Prize for 2019 gives special attention to human rights and human development in Africa.\"The Sunhak Peace Prize honors individuals and organizations who have made significant contributions to the peace and the welfare of future generations. The Sunhak Peace Prize includes a cash prize totaling one million US dollars and the Award Ceremony will take place in February 2019 in Seoul, Korea.

The Sunhak Peace Prize Committee has named the President of the African Development Bank (AfDB) Group, Dr. Akinwumi Adesina, as one of the two 2019 Laureates for the Sunhak Peace Prize. The other is Waris Dirie, a 53-year-old supermodel and anti-FGM activist.Dr. Akinwumi Adesina, President of the African Development Bank (AfDB)As an agricultural economist, Dr. Adesina, 58, has been a leader in agricultural innovation for over 30 years. He has contributed greatly to food security in Africa, aimed at improving the lives of millions currently living in poverty, throughout the African continent. The Sunhak Committee acknowledges Dr. Adesina’s achievements in promoting Good Governance of Africa, which boosts Africa’s capacity to feed itself and transform its total economies for generating wealth for millions of rural and poor African farmers.Chairman of the Sunhak Peace Prize Committee, Dr. Il Sik Hong, stated: “The Sunhak Peace Prize was established based upon the vision of “One Family Under God.” The 2019 Sunhak Peace Prize gives special attention to peace and human development in Africa.”Dr. Hong added: “In order for us to build an era of peace and coexistence in the 21st century, we want to encourage continuous development in Africa. Africa is a rising star and its growth will contribute global progress and development throughout the 21st century.”The Sunhak Peace Prize honors individuals and organizations who have made significant contributions to the peace and the welfare of future generations. The Sunhak Peace Prize includes a cash prize totaling $1 million. The 2019 Sunhak Peace Prize Award Ceremony will take place in February 2019 in Seoul, Korea.According to the AfDB, Dr. Adesina, a Nigerian, has been a leader in agricultural innovation in Africa for over 30 years, bringing great improvement to Africa’s food security. contributing to Africa’s dynamic growth. His leadership is building stepping-stones for Africa’s dynamic growth.Dr. Adesina, adds the AfDB, pioneered major transformations in the agricultural field, including expanding rice production by introducing high yielding technologies, designing and implementing policies to support farmers’ access to technologies at scale, increasing the availability of credit for millions of smallholder farmers, attracting private investments for the agricultural sector, rooting out the corrupt elements in the fertilizer industry, and assisting in the establishment of major agricultural policies for Africa’s green revolution.The “Africa Fertiliser Summit,” which he organized in 2006, is said to be one of the largest high-level meetings in Africa’s history that had a focus on solving Africa’s food issues. During the Summit, Dr. Adesina was instrumental in developing the “Abuja Declaration on Fertiliser for the African Green Revolution,” whereby the participants stated their commitment to the “eradication of hunger in Africa, by 2030.”

CAPE TOWN, South Africa, Nov. 23, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- The Sunhak Peace Prize Committee announced Laureates for the Sunhak Peace Prize for 2019 - Waris Dirie and Dr. Akinwumi Ayodeji Adesina.Waris Dirie, a human rights activist and super-model, is widely acclaimed for raising worldwide awareness of Female Genital Mutilation (FGM). As an agricultural economist, Dr. Akinwumi Adesina has been promoting Good Governance in Africa through agricultural innovation for over 30 years and greatly contributed to food security in Africa.   Waris Dirie was born into a nomad family and she was subjected to FGM at the age of 5. In 1997, she shared her experience with the world and was appointed as the Special Ambassador to the UN for the Elimination of FGM.In 2002, she established the Desert Flower Foundation and in 2003, her anti-FGM campaign led 15 African Union member countries to ratify the Maputo Protocol which promotes the eradication of FGM. In 2012, the UN unanimously passed a resolution banning the practice of FGM, and the UN has set a goal to eliminate FGM by 2030.Another laureate Dr. Akinwumi Adesina pioneered in expanding rice production, increasing the availability of credit for smallholder farmers, attracting private investments for the agricultural sector, rooting out the corrupt elements in the fertilizer industry, and establishing the major agricultural policies.For the 2006 Africa Fertilizer Summit, he was instrumental in developing the Abuja Declaration on Fertilizer for the African Green Revolution, stating eradication of hunger in Africa, by 2030.Dr. Akinwumi Adesina currently serves as the president of the African Development Bank Group, promoting the \"High 5 Strategy\", which is improving the lives of millions of people throughout Africa.Dr. Il Sik Hong, Chairman of the Sunhak Committee, stated that \"the Sunhak Peace Prize was established based upon the vision of \'One Family Under God\' and the Sunhak Peace Prize for 2019 gives special attention to human rights and human development in Africa.\"The Sunhak Peace Prize honors individuals and organizations who have made significant contributions to the peace and the welfare of future generations. The Sunhak Peace Prize includes a cash prize totaling one million US dollars and the Award Ceremony will take place in February 2019 in Seoul, Korea.