A mission to Berlin by African Development Bank Group executives has highlighted Germany’s pivotal support for the African Development Fund, the institution’s concessional lending window.
The mission, led by Prof. Kevin Chika Urama, the Chief Economist and Vice President of the Bank Group, also featured the presentation of the Bank Group’s 2025 African Economic Outlook Report (AEO) to German public and private sector leaders, in Berlin.
Prof Urama was accompanied by the Vice President for Finance and Chief Financial Officer (CFO), Ms. Hassatou N’Sele. The Bank delegation engaged with representatives of the German government, private sector, academia, and civil society organizations, holding bilateral meetings and policy dialogues with senior officials from the Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ) of Germany, the Federal Chancellery, and the Konrad Adenauer Foundation.
Prof. Urama was interviewed by Africa-Table Media, a leading Africa-focused media outlet for German investors, businesses and politicians, on financing Africa’s development in a shifting global context.
The AEO Report, with the theme, “Making Africa’s Capital Work Better for Africa’s Development” was formally launched at the 2025 Annual Meetings of the Bank Group, in May.
Participants at the Berlin presentation welcomed the findings of the report, describing them as timely given the ongoing geopolitical tensions, trade and tariff wars, and the declining external financial flows reflecting the changing global aid landscape.
High-level representatives from the German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development and the private sector expressed appreciation for the quality, relevance, and timeliness of the report, noting that its policy recommendations would shape strategies for future engagement with Africa’s public and private sector. They also highlighted the implications of the report’s findings for the use of Official Development Assistance (ODA) to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals in Africa.
Recurring challenges identified for concerted resolution by African governments included currency devaluation and exchange rate volatility, unclear and inconsistent regulatory environments, weak institutional governance capacity, and lack of transparency.
To more effectively de-risk public sector-related market risks and enhance private sector participation in African countries, participants urged greater investment in soft infrastructure–the knowledge base and institutional capacity of African governments.
Prof. Urama underscored this in his Africa-Table interview. He said, “We should focus on the soft factors to secure the political environment, the market environment, and the public policy space, thus facilitating the private sector’s entry–rather than using ODA funds for physical infrastructure.”
The role of Germany in global development also came to the fore. Acknowledging this, in the Aftica-Table interview, Prof. Urama said, “Germany has a key role to play here: Since 1983, Germany has been one of the ADF’s largest supporters. A continued strong commitment to replenishing this fund would be a significant contribution to securing development progress in fragile African economies.”
The Bank Group is preparing for the seventeenth replenishment of the Fund (ADF-17), with the final meeting and pledging session scheduled to take place in December 2025.
The mission to Germany took place from 25 to 27 June 2025, at the invitation of Mr. Martin Kipping, Executive Director of the Bank Group representing Germany, Luxembourg, Portugal, and Switzerland.
