Africa: AfDB to Increase Lending to U.S.$11 Billion

Africa: AfDB to Increase Lending to U.S. $11 Billion
Constance Ikokwu
13 March 2009

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Washington, DC — As discussions continue on ways to tackle the impact of the global financial crisis in Africa, the African Development Bank (AFDB) has decided to increase its annual lending to $11 billion to help countries in dire need.

President of the AFDB, Mr. Donald Kaberuka, made the Bank's position known at the two-day conference organised by the government of Tanzania and the International Monetary Fund (IMF) in Dar es Salaam.
Kaberuka told the conference participants titled: 'Changes: Creating Successful Partnerships for Africa's Growth' that the bank had also unveiled an Emergency Liquidity Facility of $1.5 billion, a Trade Finance Initiative of $1 billion, and a Framework for Accelerated Resource Transfer of African Development Fund (ADF) Resources to help member states.
"The bank currently has enough risk capital to deliver on its normal lending programme consistent with its medium term strategy," said Kaberuka.
"We currently estimate that this lending program will consume about 90 percent of its risk capital by 2012. However, the new demand created by the crisis to which the bank is responding implies that the bank's risk capital will need to be boosted by the end of 2011," he added.
Kaberuka observed that it is important that development institutions have enough resources to support member countries in a critical period such as this.
The conference addressed key policy questions, with the common goal of forging renewed African partnerships for growth in Africa in the 21st century. Key questions that were addressed include:
What do Africa's successes tell us about the main bottlenecks and risks to sustained growth and poverty reduction? How best can countries tap into the potential of the private sector and the financial sector to advance these goals?
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How can countries reduce the risks posed by exogenous shocks and a turbulent global economy and avoid the "resource curse"?
How does the model for financing development need to adapt? What should be the direction of Africa 's already evolving partnerships, including with the IMF?
The conference was hosted by the IMF Managing Director, Dominique Strauss-Kahn, and opened by the Tanzanian President, Jakaya Kikwete. Delegates to the conference included former United Nations Secretary General, Kofi Annan.