ADB improves its ranking on the 2018 World Index

The 2018 edition of the Aid Transparency Index report, published by Publish What You Fund, ranked the African Development Bank (AfDB) fourth among forty-five five development organizations, this institution said on its website. With this ranking, the ADB has gained six places compared to its position in 2016, according to the same source. This better ranking rewards the improvement of the Bank's operational capacities as well as the efficiency of its systems and processes: the African Development Bank complies with quality requirements in the preparation of its reports and observes the rules of the Bank. disclosure of its programs, projects, aid and financial interventions, the ADB said. The Aid Transparency Index (ATI) is the only independent assessment of aid transparency in major aid and development agencies. It requires timely and accurate, comprehensive and proactive publication of all forms of aid and related development activities. The index revealed that "although the organizations provide information on the objectives of their operations, only four Development Financial Institutions (DFIs): the Asian Development Bank, the Inter-American Development Bank, the World Bank and the African Bank. development, publish details or summaries of impact estimates, evaluation and analysis documents, as well as the results of pre-projects. " In this context, the President of the African Development Bank, Akinwumi Adesina, said that "proactive stakeholder relations and transparent governance are crucial and central to our work. All our action is aimed at achieving results that make the African Development Bank the leading institution for financing development in Africa. This recent ranking in the Global Aid Transparency Index illustrates the Bank's adherence to its strategic priorities and unwavering commitment to Africa's development and transparency agenda. " As a signatory to the International Aid Transparency Initiative (IATI) since April 2011, the AfDB has recently launched a portal for its projects. It publishes data in line with IATI's international transparency standards and makes information on development-related expenditures more accessible, easier to use and understand. Proponents of data transparency spoke out in favor of the index, which was adopted by the United Nations, the African Union, the European Union, the United States Government and various international and regional organizations. The report highlights, however, some "obstacles to the dynamics driving data transparency, including reducing the civic space needed by citizens and civil society organizations to participate in decision-making. The increasingly limited resources of official development assistance and the evolution of the development field create new obstacles and new opportunities, of a budgetary, regulatory, technical and ethical nature for global operations in favor of transparency". Almost all agencies in the index (93%) report their activities using the International Initiative for Aid Transparency (IATI) standard, notes the AfDB.