President William Ruto, in line with his vision calling for African countries to be granted opportunities to achieve their development goals, called for the replenishment of the Ksh3.3 Trillion African Development Fund issued by the African Development Bank (AfDB).
In a meeting held between, President Ruto and AfDB President Dr Akinwumi Adesina at State House, Nairobi on May 9, the Kenyan Head of State requested for a substantial increase in the fund to support the 37 African member countries.
“I will continue to make a strong case for the 17th replenishment of the African Development Fund. Kenya has benefitted from resources made available to us by the Fund,” said President Ruto.
Ruto’s request will require the bank to up its replenishment from Ksh1.2 trillion (USD8.9 billion) which was issued in 2022 and concludes in 2025.
“The ongoing 16th replenishment—which raised a historic $8.9 billion in December 2022—is set to conclude next year” stated AFDB.
According to the President, the fund is instrumental in pushing the development agenda for African countries and it propels the economic capabilities.
In a particular instance, Ruto cited the fund’s efficiency in maintaining the Last Mile Connectivity which connects power to rural homes and has successfully connected to more than 10 Million households.
“Kenyans know it is a government project, but they need to know it was financed by the African Development Fund,” President Ruto pointed out. “It is making a difference in people’s lives, and we want to invest more to add momentum.”
The African Development Fund (ADF) is the concessional window of the African Development Bank (AfDB) Group which was established in 1972.
More details of the meeting held between the President and the bank’s leadership revealed that AFDB will be hosting a meeting in Nairobi and the bank was assessing Kenya’s readiness to host the conference..
The Bank Group’s 59th Annual Meetings were scheduled for May 27 to May 31 and held at the Kenyatta International Conference Centre (KICC).
The agenda of the meeting revolved around Africa’s Transformation, the African Development Bank Group, and the Reform of the Global Financial Architecture
