AfDB Renews Commitment to Economic Resilience in Africa - ENA English
AfDB Renews Commitment to Economic Resilience in Africa
Addis Ababa August 27/2020 (ENA)African Development Bank (AfDB) has reaffirmed its commitment to support efforts of economic resilience in the African continent.
The 55th Annual Meetings of Africa Development Bank (AfDB) and the 46th meetings of the Board of Governors of the African Development Fund (ADF) began in Abidjan, Côte d’Ivoire, on Wednesday, 26 August 2020.
During the meetings, governors from the Bank’s 54 regional member states in Africa and 27 non-regional member states will also evaluate the response to the pandemic, which will help to build a truly resilient post-COVID-19 Africa.
According to estimates by the AfDB, Africa could lose 173.1 billion USD in GDP in 2020 and 236.7 billion USD in 2021 because of the pandemic.
Addressing the audience, Akinwumi Adesina, President of the AfDB said that Africa has lost over a decade of gains of economic due to the COVID-19 .
"With the pandemic, Africa has lost over a decade of gains of economic growth. Africa’s recovery will be long and difficult. Now we must help Africa to build back, boldly, but smartly, paying greater attention to quality growth: health, climate and the environment," he stated.
The restrictions and strict lockdown measures imposed at the start of the crisis, some of which are being gradually relaxed, have resulted in mass closures of businesses and millions of job losses.
It is to be recalled that the back in April reacted swiftly to the pandemic, with a series of bold measures to support its regional member states to help cushion them against the impacts of the outbreak.
One example was the launch of the COVID-19 Response Facility of up to 10 billion USD, according to the AfDB’s press release sent to ENA.
The African Development Bank’s Annual Meetings brought together Ministers of Finance, central bank governors, political decision-makers, civil society organizations, heads of international organizations and key representatives of industry and the private sector, the press release pointed out.