UN Secretary General and African Development Bank President Decide to Strengthen Linkages and Promote Africa's Development Agenda

Abidjan, Côte d'Ivoire, April 30, 2019 – The impact of development on the continent and security in the Sahel were among the main topics discussed at a recent meeting between UN Secretary-General António Guterres and the President of the African Development Bank. Akinwumi Adesina, New York.

The two leaders agreed that current efforts must succeed in Africa, or risk failing at the global level, and stressed the need for closer collaboration among their institutions to achieve the goals of sustainable development.

Guterres voiced strong support for African Development Bank's flagship program "Desert to Power" This initiative is expected to provide electricity to 250 million people. He also proposed to convene a special global meeting on Lake Chad, in consultation with the President of Nigeria. Muhammadu Buhari.

The "Desert to Power" program, a $ 10 billion initiative to build a 10 GW solar zone in the Sahel, the largest in the world, aims to develop and provide 10 GW of solar energy. To 2025 and to provide green electricity to 250 million people, including some of the poorest countries in the world.

According to Adesina, "Secretary General Guterres and I have had a very productive engagement and we are committed to strengthening strategic and operational partnerships between the UN and the African Development Bank. I am encouraged by the generous support of the Secretary-General for the Bank's development initiatives, which we are sure will bear fruit across the continent. "

The two heads of institutions met after Adesina's trip to the United States at the World Bank's Spring Meetings in Washington DC.

Adesina also briefed the Secretary General on ongoing discussions on the Bank's General Capital Increase (GCI-7), designed to meet Africa's growing demand for loans. The Secretary-General pledged to advocate "for the mobilization of sufficient resources to promote the Bank's development objectives".

Guterres and Adesina also discussed the Bank's first investment forum in Africa, held last year in Johannesburg, South Africa, where projects worth US $ 38.7 billion guaranteed investment interests. The Secretary General accepted Adesina's invitation to participate in the 2019 edition of the event, to be held in November in South Africa.