AfDB Seeks Significant Investment Partnerships With UAE

By Adedapo Adesanya

The President of the African Development Bank (AfDB) Group, Mr Akinwumi Adesina, has called on the United Arab Emirates (UAE) to see Africa as a significant investment partner, as he tries to lure the country as a member of the bank.

Mr Adesina made the call during his official three-day visit to the kingdom which covered engagements in Dubai and Abu Dhabi.

The visit—which took place alongside the World Government Summit and the closing days of Expo 2020 Dubai—explored potential partnerships for strategic investment in Africa between the lender and the UAE, in renewable energy, agriculture and food production.

Speaking on the UAE’s exceptionally visionary leadership, Mr Adesina said: “There is a lot that Africa can draw from the UAE’s remarkable success. What the UAE has done, using its resources, drive and determination to develop the country into what it is today is highly impressive.

“We are keen to see the UAE become an even more valued and significant investment partner in Africa.

“The UAE has been a highly valued participant in the African Development Fund, our Bank Group’s concessionary lending arm supporting low-income countries since 1978.

“Hopefully, we may at some point be able to welcome the UAE as a member of the African Development Bank,” he said.

During the visit, Sheikh Maktoum Bin Mohammed Al Maktoum, Dubai’s Deputy Ruler, Deputy Prime Minister and UAE’s Minister of Finance, and the Abidjan-based multilateral lender chief, discussed strategic opportunities that would strengthen economic ties between the UAE, the Bank, and Africa.

Mr Adesina also held a raft of bilateral meetings with other senior members of government and heads of UAE parastatal companies.

Discussions on significant partnerships were also held with the Minister of State for International Cooperation, Mrs Reem Al Hashimy—who is also Managing Director of Expo 2020 Dubai—and the Minister of State for African Affairs, Sheikh Shakhbout bin Nahyan bin Mubarak Al Nahyan.

Receiving Mr Adesina, the Minister of State in charge of African Affairs, Sheikh Shakhbout, spoke about the UAE’s desire to help African countries diversify their economies as well as provide value-added support for small and medium-sized enterprises.

They also disclosed how to explore potential social housing investment opportunities, and connect young African fintech companies to innovations that would allow them to grow and thrive on the continent.

Mr Adesina and the Director-General of the Abu Dhabi Fund for Development, Mr Mohammed Saif Al Suwaidi, also signed a memorandum of understanding for closer collaboration, on behalf of their respective institutions.

Mr Suwaidi said: “We consider the African Development Bank to be the continent’s Think Tank. We believe that Africa is the world’s next growth frontier and we don’t want to miss that.”

Mr Adesina and Mr Sultan Bin Sulayem, CEO of Dubai Ports World, the world’s largest port operator, with 78 marine and inland terminals in more than 60 countries, held substantive discussions and discussed investment cooperation that would link African ports to renewable energy and industrial hubs including food production and agro-processing.

Equally productive discussions were held with Mr Mohamed Jameel Al Ramahi, CEO of Masdar, an innovative Abu Dhabi renewable energy company; with Mr Ahmed Saeed Al Calily, CEO and Chief Strategy and Risk Officer of Mubadala, a sovereign investor managing a diverse portfolio of UAE and global assets; with senior officials of TAQA, a leading UAE energy company; and with the Abu Dhabi Investment Authority (ADIA).

Prominent in discussions were investment synergies between the UAE’s Etihad 7 energy initiative and the African Development Bank’s Desert to Power initiative, with a combined potential to provide 350 million people with renewable energy

As a keynote speaker at Dubai’s Annual Investment Forum and during meetings with key government, business and investment leaders, the AfDB Chief highlighted the continent’s largely untapped potential in several sectors, the bank’s unparalleled knowledge of Africa’s development and investment landscape, and the institutions’ risk management instruments.