By Asmau Ahmad
The African Development Bank (AfDB) Group has said that it would invest “heavily” in the domestic manufacturing of vaccines and in African the healthcare system.
President of the AfDB, DrAkinwumiAdesina, who stated this at the closing of the 2021 Annual Meetings of the bank, noted that only 51 percent of public health facilities had basic water and sanitation, while 31 percent of healthcare facilities had electricity.
The AfDB president also underlined the fact that Africa still imported 60 per cent to 70 per cent of its pharmaceutical drugs.
“The lives of 1.2 billion people in Africa are at risk. We must give hope to the poor, and the vulnerable, by ensuring that every African, regardless of their income level, gets access to quality healthcare, as well as health insurance and social protection.”
Akinwunmi further proposed an African stability mechanism, to act as a firewall against external shocks and pledged the bank’s commitment to strengthen support to African countries.
The proposal included that the bank act as a conduit for the International Monetary Fund (IMF) special drawing rights, which it would then on-lend to African countries.
He said the support would be towards tackling the economic and health impacts of the pandemic.
Mr Kenneth Ofori-Atta, Ghana’s Minister of Finance and Economic Planning, urged the AfDB to take a leading role in the continent’s recovery.
“Our bank, distinct in its role, has to be at the centre of Africa’s build-back, through targeted support to tackle Africa’s development challenges and lay the foundation to respond to future challenges,” Ofori-Atta said.
Meanwhile, green growth was also high on the agenda.In a panel discussion, MrAlok Sharma, British Member of Parliament and President of the Conference of the Parties (COP) 26, said it was vital that developed countries delivered on a 100-billion-dollar commitment, to tackling climate change.
Mr Patrick Verkooijen, Chief Executive Officer of the Global Centre on Adaptation (GCA), lauded the Africa Adaptation Acceleration Programme (AAAP).
The AAAP is a joint initiative between the GCA and AfDB to mobilise 25 billion dollars to accelerate climate change adaptation across Africa.
The 2021 Annual Meetings of the AfDB had the 56th Annual Meetings of the Bank Group, and the 47th meeting of the Governors of the African Development Fund, the bank’s concessional lending arm.
