Mozambique President Praises AfDB’s Adesina for Decade of Transformative Leadership

Mozambique’s President Daniel Chapo has hailed Dr. Akinwumi Adesina for a decade of exceptional leadership as President of the African Development Bank Group (AfDB), crediting his tenure with transforming ambition into concrete results that have improved millions of lives across Africa. Speaking at the opening of the Africa50 General Shareholders Meeting in Maputo on Wednesday, President Chapo also commended Adesina’s role as Board Chair of Africa50 — the pan-African investment platform jointly created by African governments and the AfDB to address the continent’s massive infrastructure funding gap.

“Your legacy is not just institutional but impacting the lives of Africans, and we thank you and wish you the most success for what the future has in store for you,” Chapo said.

Recognising a Visionary Leader

Africa50 CEO Alain Ebobissé joined in the tributes, particularly highlighting Adesina’s role in launching the Alliance for Green Infrastructure in Africa (AGIA). This initiative, created in partnership with other organisations, aims to mobilise capital to catalyse up to $10 billion in green infrastructure opportunities, opening the door for significant private sector investment in sustainable projects.

A fireside chat moderated by Nozipho Mbanjwa-Tshabalala, CEO of the Conversation Strategists, explored Adesina’s legacy of institutional reform, record-breaking performance, and his contribution to elevating global confidence in Africa’s development prospects.

Infrastructure as a Foundation for Growth

In his remarks, Adesina stressed that Africa’s vision must be bold, collective, and measurable through tangible results, especially in delivering critical infrastructure such as power generation.

“Economies that don’t have power can never grow. It’s a direct correlation with your GDP growth and access to electricity,” he said. “You can’t create jobs, you can’t industrialise, and you are not going to be competitive in the dark.”

He also challenged long-standing perceptions of Africa as a high-risk investment destination, citing Moody’s data showing cumulative losses on African infrastructure investments of just 1.9% over 15 years — a rate lower than many other regions. “Africa is not as risky as it is perceived. You can invest in Africa, get great returns, and have institutions like us ensuring your capital grows and remains secure,” he affirmed.

Youth as Africa’s Greatest Economic Asset

Turning to Africa’s demographics, Adesina underlined the importance of leveraging the continent’s 420 million young people as a powerful economic driver. “Everything we do needs to be focused on African youth. If you don’t create youth-based wealth, who will pay the taxes in the future?” he asked.

A Decade of Growth and Impact at the AfDB

Since taking office in 2015, Adesina has overseen a period of unprecedented growth at the African Development Bank:

• Capital increase from $93 billion in 2015 to $318 billion in 2024.

• Impact of the High 5s initiatives — Light up and Power Africa, Feed Africa, Industrialise Africa, Integrate Africa, and Improve the Quality of Life for the People of Africa — reaching 565 million Africans.

• Ranking as the best multilateral financing institution in the world for two consecutive years.

• Maintenance of AAA credit ratings throughout his tenure, even during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Africa50: From Concept to Infrastructure Powerhouse

Adesina’s leadership also propelled Africa50 from an idea to a significant continental infrastructure facilitator. Achievements include:

• $1.4 billion in managed assets.

• Portfolio value exceeding $8 billion.

• 33 active projects in energy, transport, digital infrastructure, healthcare, and education across 32 countries.

• $275 million raised for the Africa Infrastructure Acceleration Fund from over 20 African institutional investors.

Looking Ahead

As Adesina prepares to step down from the AfDB presidency on 1 September 2025, he reflected on his decade-long mission: “My legacy is not a personal one. My legacy is an Africa strong enough to deliver finance for its transformation at scale — we have come of age, and we can handle issues by ourselves and deliver.”