The African Development Bank (AfDB) is a 60-year-old development finance institution. In 2023 it disbursed $6.1bn, less than half the sum raised by the Inter-American Development Bank for a region less than half as populous. Africa remains the only region where the World Bank is still a bigger project backer than the regional development bank.
Non-African donors to the bank wield a combined 41% vote share. Rich non-African economies are key to maintaining the bank's AAA credit rating. Within Africa, votes are proportional to each country's capital contributions; Nigeria has the largest African vote share at 9%. The winning candidate for president needs at least half of the total vote and also half of the African vote.
The outgoing president is Akinwumi Adesina, who helped raise the bank's profile. His Rwandan predecessor was installed with pivotal lobbying from America in 2005. The Trump administration has said it is cutting America's sizeable contribution to the bank.
Cuts in aid are expected to hit Africa especially hard; the continent is likely to lose at least 30% of total grant funding from abroad. Private capital is still not filling infrastructure gaps. Currently too little capital is spread too thinly across many projects that the bank is forced to pick up because African governments often neglect them.
The bank is pushing a $12bn plan for a water-transport corridor from Lake Victoria to Egypt's Mediterranean coast, which would transform African waterways trade across east Africa.
Lack of capability is usually disguised by lack of interest.