Akinwumi Adesina, the president of the African Development Bank, is making an official visit to Kenya from 19 to 21 July 2018, aimed at strengthening cooperation with the Kenyan government and attracting more private funds.
During his stay in the country, the President of the Bank will meet with the Head of State Uhuru Kenyatta and will take part in a bilateral meeting with the Vice President, William Ruto. President Adesina will also meet the Secretaries of State in charge of Agriculture and Irrigation respectively; Transport and Infrastructure, Housing and Urban Development; Energy ; Water and Sanitation; Industrialization and Business Development; education ; and Health.
These sectors are part of the Bank’s Transformation Development Priorities, commonly known as High 5: Enlighten Africa and Provide Energy, Feed Africa, Integrate Africa, Industrialize Africa, and Improve the quality of life of Africans. These priorities are in line with the Kenyan government’s development agenda, the Big Four Agenda, which focuses on industrial production, food security and production, social housing and the health system for all.
President Adesina is also expected to meet with representatives of the Kenya Private Sector Alliance, an opportunity to highlight the importance of the sector in advancing the country’s Big Four agenda. Much of the discussion will focus on the Bank’s new viable project market and the Africa Investment Forum (AIF), a multi-stakeholder and multi-disciplinary platform that aims to increase and expand bankable projects on the continent, reducing associated risks, mobilizing capital to finance them and accelerating the financial closure of transactions.
Akinwumi Adesina will also participate in the general meeting of shareholders of Africa50 in its capacity as Chairman of the Board of Directors. Africa50 is an infrastructure investment platform for high-impact national and regional projects in the energy, transport, information and communication technology and water sectors.
President Adesina has also planned to visit the Nairobi Outer Ring Road (Nairobi Ring Road), whose US $ 109 million improvement works have been financed by the Bank. This infrastructure, which has reduced traffic congestion on the highway that connects the city’s main arteries, has had many socio-economic benefits. Akinwumi Adesina will also visit the Olkaria and Menengai geothermal power plants, both co-financed by the Bank, the Government of Kenya and various partners. Located in the Rift Valley north-west of Nairobi (125 and 180 kilometers respectively), these projects aim to meet Kenya’s electricity demand and diversify electricity sources by developing the huge local geothermal potential.
The African Development Bank’s portfolio of active projects in Kenya is $ 3.1 billion, of which 77% is allocated to infrastructure ($ 2.3 billion).
