Who replaces Adesina as AfDB President?

The president of the African Development Bank Group, Dr Akinwumi Adesina, will leave office as president in August 2025.

The entire African continent is keenly watching and waiting to see who will replace him for the top job at the bank.

Whoever replaces Dr Akinwumi Adesina will be responsible for executing the bank’s mission, which is to fight poverty and improve living conditions on the continent by promoting the investment of public and private capital in projects and programs that are likely to contribute to the region’s economic and social development.

The election of the President of AfDB is held during the Annual Meeting of the Bank closest to the end of the term of office of the serving President. The current President assumed office on 1 September 2020, following his re-election for a second term on 27 August 2020.

Accordingly, his term of office will expire on 31 August 2025, with elections for a new President due to take place during the 2025 Annual Meeting on 29 May 2025 in Abidjan, Côte d’Ivoire.

Several bankers have indicated interest in leading the bank after Dr Adesina’s exit. One of the frontrunners is Amadou Hott. He previously served as vice president at the AfDB and later left for an appointment in the Senegalese government.

Dr Adesina subsequently appointed him as the bank’s special envoy. There are indications that Adesina may be behind him which, depending on what future shareholders want to chart, may help or hinder him.

It would also make him the second Senegalese to hold the position, after Babacar Ndiaye who was president from 1985 to 1995. Thus, his nationality could be a hindrance, according to some analysts.

Another strong candidate is Dr. Sidi Ould TAH, the astute and current Managing Director of the Arab Bank for Economic Development in Africa (BADEA), itself a formidable Pan-African financial institution. A former Minister of Economy and Finance of Mauritania, his term of office at BADEA expires soon.

Advocates for his candidature are highlighting his proximity to the prodigious investment and finance resources of the Arab world, that could significantly boost the AfDB’s investment portfolio in Africa.

A third contender is a former AfDB Senior Vice President Ms Bajabulile Swazi Tshabalala. Her candidacy has been endorsed by the Government of South Africa. Ms Tshabalala resigned from the Bank in October 2024 to pursue the AfDB presidency.

In accordance with Article 36 of the Agreement Establishing the Bank, to be eligible for the Office of the President of the African Development Bank, one must be a national of one of the regional (African) member states of the Bank and a person of the highest competence in matters pertaining to the activities, management, and administration of the Bank.

The President is elected by the African Development Bank’s Board of Governors. The Board is made up of representatives of the eighty-one (81) member states, who are usually ministers of finance, planning, or central bank governors or their duly designated alternates.

Article 9 of the Rules of Procedure Governing the Election of the President of the African Development Bank as amended (the “Election Rules”) provides that a candidate shall be elected if he or she obtains at least 50.01% of the total votes of the regional (African) member countries and at least 50.01% of the votes of all member countries (regional and non-regional) of the Bank.

This is also termed “double majority votes.” According to the Election Rules, the elections will be conducted using an electronic voting system or physical paper ballots.

About AfDB

The African Development Bank is the Group’s parent organization. The Agreement establishing the African Development Bank was adopted and opened for signature at the Khartoum, Sudan, conference on August 4, 1963.

This agreement entered into force on September 10, 1964, and the bank began effective operations on July 1, 1966. Its major role is to contribute to the economic and social progress of its regional member countries – individually and collectively.

As of 31 December 2023, the African Development Bank’s authorized capital is subscribed to by 81 member countries, including 54 independent African countries (regional members) and 27 non-African countries (non-regional members).

The institution’s resources come from ordinary and special resources. Ordinary resources comprise the subscribed shares of the authorized capital, a portion of which is subject to call to guarantee ADB borrowing obligations; funds received in repayment of ADB loans; funds raised through ADB borrowings on international capital markets; income derived from ADB loans; and other income received by the Bank, e.g., income from other investments.

Under Article 8 of the Agreement establishing the AfDB, the Bank is authorized to establish or be entrusted with administering and managing special funds consistent with its purposes and functions.

In line with this provision, the African Development Fund (ADF)was established with non-African states in 1972 and the Nigeria Trust Fund (NTF) with the Nigerian government in 1976.