Adedapo Adesanya
By Adedapo Adesanya
President of the African Development Bank (AfDB), Mr Akinwumi Adesina, will pay a three-day official visit to South Africa to discuss trade and investment in Africa’s second-largest economy.
He will meet the South African President, Mr Cyril Ramaphosa, and various government and industry leaders to discuss important global and regional concerns which include the bank’s development agenda and the country’s potential for increased trade and investment with the rest of Africa.
On Thursday, March 24, Mr Adesina will make a speech at the opening ceremony of the South Africa Investment Forum.
The South Africa Investment Forum convenes delegates from South Africa and the rest of the world. Its objective is to showcase the investment opportunities available in the country.
On Friday, March 25, the AfDB boss will be the keynote speaker for the African chapter of the Ambrosetti CEO Communit where he will speak on the topic Africa beyond Covid-19: a new era of opportunity.
In Johannesburg, he will also meet with G7 ambassadors accredited to South Africa. One of the key subjects of their discussion will be the Just Energy Transition agenda for South Africa, a strategy that aims to make the evolution towards a cleaner and greener energy future for the country, as far as possible.
Senior officials of the AfDB will join Mr Adesina in South Africa. They include Senior Vice President, Mr Bajabulile Swazi Tshabalala, Mr Solomon Quaynor, Vice President, Private Sector, Infrastructure & Industrialization, Ms Yacine Fal, Acting Vice-President, Regional Development, Integration, and Business Delivery, Mr Kevin Kariuki, Vice President for Power, Energy, Climate and Green Growth and Director General for the Southern Africa region, Ms Leila Mokaddem.
AfDB Group’s active portfolio in South Africa comprises 23 operations with a total commitment of about $4.5 billion in financing. Since 1997, the lender has invested nearly $7 billion in South Africa in energy and infrastructure.
