What is the African Development Bank Group?
The African Development Bank Group comprises the African Development Bank (AfDB), the African Development Fund (ADF), and the Nigeria Trust Fund (NTF).
What is the African Development Bank?
The African Development Bank (AfDB) is a regional, multilateral development bank whose shareholders include 53 countries in Africa and 24 non-African countries from the Americas, Asia, and Europe. The United States is the second largest non-regional shareholder, with approximately 6.62 of the Bank's total share holdings. The latter are also participants in the African Development Fund (ADF). The Bank was created in 1964, and began operations in 1967 to promote economic development and social progress of its regional member countries (RMCs)—individually and jointly.
The central goals of Bank activities are to promote sustainable economic growth and to reduce poverty in Africa. The Bank provides financing for a broad range of development projects and programs. In addition, it: (I) provides policy based loans and equity investments, and finances non-publicly guaranteed private-sector loans; (II) offers technical assistance for projects and programs that provide institutional support; (III) promotes the investment of public and private capital; and (IV) responds to requests for assistance in coordinating RMC development policies and plans. National and multinational projects and programs that promote regional economic cooperation and integration are also given high priority.
The United States is represented on the AfDB Board of Governors by the Secretary of the U.S. Department of Treasury, and on the Board of Directors by the U.S. Executive Director based at the Bank in Tunis, Tunisia.
A full detailed description of the AfDB is contained on the Bank's Website.
The African Development Fund
The African Development Fund (ADF) was created in 1973 and began operations in 1974. It comprises the State participants and the AfDB. The Fund's major objectives are to reduce poverty in regional member countries. It provides loans on concessional terms to low-income RMCs for projects and programs, as well as technical assistance support for studies and capacity-building activities.
The resources of the Fund come from contributions and periodic replenishments by state participants, usually on a three-year basis. The Eight Replenishment of ADF was approved in January 1999 with a target replenishment with U.S. donating approximately $100 million per year.
For detailed information on the ADF, please refer to the Bank's Website .
The Nigeria Trust Fund
The Nigeria Trust Fund (NTF) is a special fund created in 1976 by agreement between the Bank and the Government of Nigeria to assist in the development efforts of low-income RMCs whose economic and social conditions and prospects require financing on non-conventional terms.
For detailed information on the NTF, please refer to the Bank's Website.
What type of projects does the AfDB fund?
The African Development Bank is concerned with poverty reduction through employment creation, improvements in the standard of living, infrastructure development, and good governance. Therefore, the Bank funds projects, lines of credit, grants, and studies with an eye to these objectives. The primary industries of focus are agriculture and rural development, water supply and sanitation, transportation, education, health, power supply, finance, and cross cutting projects involving several sectors. The majority of projects are intended to benefit local communities, regions and areas of particular country(s), and normally do not involve large-scale projects, such as the construction of airports and corporate & residential real estate.
How much does the AfDB commit each year to finance projects, lines of credit, grant, and studies?
In general terms, the Bank commits between $2 to 3 billion annually, and part of this sum goes to jointly co-finance projects with other multilateral, bilateral and other international organizations. From a cumulative standpoint, 1967 to 2001, the Bank has committed approximately $30 billion.
In recent years, financing to the private sector is playing a more prominent role in the Bank's financial commitments. In 2001, the AfDB financed approximately $241 million in project loans and lines of credit to the private sector.
The AfDB Commercial Liaison Office is here to assist your company in doing business with the African Development Bank? Whether you are a consulting firm, manufacturer/suppliers or contractor, there are numerous business opportunities available through AfDB funded projects, grants, and lines of credit. Please refer to the various sections of the Website to guide you.