AfDB to support women-led businesses with $500m facility in 2022

Akinwumi Adesina, president, African Development Bank (AfDB), says the bank will support women-led businesses with $500 million this year.

The AfDB president said this on his Twitter handle on Sunday to commensurate the bank’s annual meetings for 2022.

Adesina said AfDB would also support Africa’s adaptation to climate change conditions through the help of the Global Centre on Adaptation and Ban Ki-moon, former secretary-general of the United Nations.

‘To help Africa adapt to climate change, the Bank is partnering globally. Together with Global Center on Adaptation, with former UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon, we are mobilising $25 billion in support of Africa,” Adesina said in a series of tweets.

“To tackle the food crisis from the Russian-Ukraine crisis, our Board of Directors approved last week a $1.5 billion African Emergency Food Production Facility, to support 20 million farmers to produce 38 million metric tons of food. The Bank partnered globally. We delivered!

“With the support of President @EmmanuelMacron and G-7, our Affirmative Action for Women in Africa (AFAWA) is raising $5 billion for women businesses. In 2021, we paid out $483 million to financial institutions to lend to women’s businesses. We will lend $500 million for women in 2022.”

Adesina further appraised the bank for its achievements, adding that the bank has consistently maintained its AAA credit ratings by all major global credit rating agencies.

“As we start the Bank’s Annual Meetings for 2022, I wish to commend the board of governors, board of directors, management and all the hard-working staff of the Bank for their relentless work. I thank all our 81 shareholder countries for their incredible confidence and support,” he added.

“The African Development Bank (AfDB) ranked by Global Finance as the Best multilateral financial institution in the world in 2021. The African Development Fund was ranked by CGD as second best in the world, ahead of all 28 concessional financing institutions in developed countries.

“We are an AAA-rated financial institution, the only one in Africa. We have consistently maintained our stellar AAA credit ratings by all major global credit rating agencies, who consistently praise our excellent risk management at the Bank.

“We have excellent and robust management and governance system. We deliver great value for our clients in Africa. Over the past six years, through our High 5 programs, our work has impacted 335 million people. We deliver great value.

“When COVID-19 struck, our Board, based on rigorous risk assessments, approved a crisis response facility of up to $10 billion. We launched a $3 billion fight Covid-19 social bond on the global capital markets, the highest ever US dollar-denominated social bond in world history.

“Our rapid COVID-19 response facility helped towards stabilising African economies. It trained 130,000 health workers. It provided social protection for about 30 million vulnerable households. It provided advisory support for 300,000 small and medium-sized businesses.

“Independently conducted survey by a global HR firm found 85% of staff are happy with the Bank, an exceptionally high level for any institution globally. Despite COVID-19 and the challenges of working from home, 97% of staff were pleased with the IT services support provided by the Bank.

“Our achievements, exceptional management, good governance systems, and delivery of the Bank cannot be denied or misrepresented based on externally fabricated lies, distortions, misinformation, and deliberately orchestrated campaign of calumny to attempt to tarnish our image.

“We will tell our story. We will not be defined by mischief makers, lies and biases. We are proudly African. We will continue to make Africa proud as Africa’s only AAA-rated financial institution.”