The African Development Bank Group (AfDB) has released its 2022 Annual Report showing solid performance over the year.
From the report, AfDB recorded a significant increase in lending to the Bank Group’s regional member countries amid a challenging global environment for Africa.
According to the Group’s financials, Africa witnessed a slow growth of its real gross domestic product growth to 3.8 percent in 2022, down from 4.8 percent in 2021 as the continent reacted to inflation, rising fuel prices and rising geopolitical tensions.
Other factors that affected GDP growth in Africa included the lingering effects of the COVID-19 pandemic, the growing impact of climate change, and adverse weather.
“Amid multiple global shocks, the AfDB once again demonstrated its unwavering commitment to African countries through targeted actions tailored to strengthening resilience across the continent,” AfDB President Akinwumi Adesina said in the foreword to the report.
Moreover, the bank’s approvals in the year under review stood at $8.2 billion higher than the previous two years, $6.3 billion in 2021 and $6.0 billion in 2020.
In 2019, before COVID-19 outbreak, the bank approved $10.1 billion, with 2022 almost reversing the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on approvals in recent years.
AfDB Annual Report: Response and strategies
Consequently, in response to continent’s food crisis and the supply disruptions of critical inputs for food production, AfDB established the $1.5 billion African Emergency Food Production Facility.
To boost to gender equality in 2022, the Bank used the Gender Marker System to categorize all its approved sovereign operations.
The majority of these operations – 63 per cent – contributed directly to women’s access to social services and skills enhancement across the High 5s.
In 2022, 100 per cent of the Bank’s generation-related approvals were based on renewable energy. This compares with a share of 56 per cent during 2010–2015, prior to the launch of the New Deal on Energy for Africa in 2016.
At the 27th United Nations Climate change conference held in November 2022 in Sharm el-Sheikh, Egypt, the AfDB joined African countries and leaders to “amplify Africa’s voice and priorities on climate change.”
The Bank Group maintained a triple-A rating with a stable outlook from all four major global rating agencies.
“The rating continued to reflect the Bank’s solid capacity adequacy, robust risk management, prudent financial management, high liquidity, and strong shareholder support,” the report noted.