The African Development Bank Group concluded five days of annual meetings in Accra, Ghana on Friday with the current President, Dr. Akinwumi Adesina pushing for a more independent Africa.
Adesina called upon all relevant parties to advocate for mass food production for export as this will eliminate hunger and poverty among the population.
“Time has come for Africa not just to produce food. Africa must process food. Africa must package food. Africa must have quality standards on food and Africa must export to others. So, when we talk about agriculture, we’re not talking about agriculture to maintain poverty, no – agriculture to create wealth for Africa,” said Adesina.
Adesina further reiterated the need to boost Africa’s security given the high level of insecurity, especially in the jihadist hit nations.
“Development can only happen when we have security. So, the days are gone when security is looked like something for others. Security is now part of our own thinking in the Bank because we must support the countries to address security. There must be a link between security, investment, growth and development,” said Adesina.
This year’s meetings bore the special stamp of a continent recovering from the socio-economic consequences of the Covid-19 pandemic.
