Adesina appoints ex-Senegal minister to champion green infrastructure in Africa

BUSINESS REPORTER

African Development Bank Group (AfDB) president Akinwumi Adesina has appointed Senegal’s former minister Amadou Hott as his Special Envoy and global champion for the Alliance for Green Infrastructure in Africa (AGIA).

The African Development Bank, Africa Union and Africa50 launched the Alliance during COP27 last month with global partners: African Union Development Agency, the African Sovereign Investors Forum, the European Investment Bank, the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development, the French Development Agency, the Rockefeller Foundation, the US Trade and Development Agency, the Global Centre on Adaptation and the Private Infrastructure Development Group.

The Alliance will accelerate Africa’s transition to Net Zero by mobilising, at scale and speed, investments needed to bridge the infrastructure gap for the continent’s low-carbon and climate-resilient development.

The Alliance will mobilise up to US$500m needed for a robust pipeline of bankable, greener projects. This is projected to generate up to US$10bn in investment opportunities from a combination of co-investments, co-financing, risk mitigation and blended finance.

Hott brings a wealth of experience in resource mobilisation, public-private-partnerships, sustainable energy and infrastructure finance, and investment banking, AfDB said in a statement on Tuesday.

He has strong relationships with African policymakers, development partners, strategic and institutional investors to mobilise significant capital for green infrastructure project development and financing in Africa.

Hott was until last September, Senegal’s minister for Economy, Planning and Cooperation. During his tenure, the country implemented landmark economic reforms, including the Economic and Social Resilience Plan and the reform of public-private partnerships.

Before joining government, Hott was AfDB’s VP for Power, Energy, Green Growth and Climate Change. During his tenure, the Bank Group significantly increased investments in renewable energy. In 2017, he helped the Bank Group allocate 100% of its power generation investments in renewable energies.

Prior to joining the Bank Group, Hott served in structured finance, sovereign wealth fund management, and the development of integrated energy solutions in various major markets including New York, London, Dubai, and Lagos.

Hott said he was honoured to champion “this great initiative under President Adesina’s visionary and impactful leadership”.

“The Alliance will support Africa’s transition to Net Zero emissions. We need to frontload investments in infrastructure for Africa to meet the Sustainable Development Goals by 2030 and to develop the continent. I look forward to working with all regional and global stakeholders and partners to succeed in this new challenge,” Hott said.

The appointment of Hott came a day after the bank group tapped Prof Padmashree Gehl Sampath as a special advisor on pharmaceuticals and health infrastructure to Adesina.

She will also be leading the technical work related to the setting up of the African Pharmaceutical Technology Foundation, a new pan-African institution launched by the Bank, at the request of Regional Member Countries.

A well-respected thought leader in the field of development studies and global health, Prof Gehl Sampath is working on some of the world’s most pressing challenges, predominantly from technology, trade, and industrialisation perspectives. At the African Development Bank, she will provide strategic guidance on pharmaceuticals and health, which have become important focus areas for the Bank in the wake of the Covid-19 pandemic.

Adesina said Prof Gehl Sampath’s appointment was a logical step considering the Bank Group’s bold efforts in response to the Covid-19 pandemic. To tackle challenges arising from the pandemic, the Boards of the African Development Bank Group approved a Quality Health Infrastructure Strategy and an action plan to develop pharmaceutical capacity in Africa for pharmaceutical products and vaccines.

“She will provide strategic guidance on these new areas where we will be investing. She is a globally acclaimed leader who brings global expertise and experience on pharmaceutical and health policy that will greatly enhance the work and delivery of the African Development Bank Group on its planned investments for pharmaceuticals and vaccines, as well as quality health care infrastructure for Africa,” Adesina said.