Africa needs welfarist policies, people-centred development to tackle poverty – AfDB President

The President of the African Development Bank Group, Dr. Akinwumi Adesina, has appealed to leaders in Nigeria and across Africa to make poverty history as he outlined a compelling case for welfarist policies and people-centred development.
“Given the high levels of poverty in Africa, and Nigeria, what is needed are welfarist policies that exponentially expand opportunities for all, reduce inequalities, improve the quality of life of people,” Adesina said as he received the prestigious Awolowo prize for leadership at a colourful ceremony in Lagos on Wednesday.
Africa’s present and former presidents were among hundreds of guests who attended the award ceremony where Adesina delivered the Awolowo Foundation’s annual lecture on ‘Making a New Nigeria: Welfarist Policies and People-Centred Development.’
Among visiting Presidents were Azali Assoumani of the Union of the Comoros; Samia Suluhu Hassan of the United Republic of Tanzania and Sahle-Work Zewde of the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia. The Prime Minister of Togo Victoire Tomegah Dogbe represented her country’s President Faure Gnassingbe.
Leaders from across Nigeria included Vice President Kashim Shettima who represented President Bola Tinubu, former Presidents Goodluck Ebele Jonathan, Olusegun Obasanjo and Yakubu Gowon and Ghana’s former president John Dramani Mahama. Also attending were 19 State Governors and royal fathers including the Emir of Bichi Alhaji Nasiru Ado Bayero, the Obi of Onitsha Igwe Nnaemeka Alfred Achebe, the Ooni of Ife Oba Adeyeye Enitan Ogunwusi, the Olu of Warri Ogiame Atuwatse III and the Igwe of Orlu Dr. Patrick Acholonu. The event was moderated by Dr. Victor Oladokun, Senior Advisor for Communication and Stakeholder Relations to the President of the African Development Bank.
In his lecture, Adesina identified five critical areas that Nigerian and African leaders need to focus on to transform their economies and people’s lives: The transformation of the rural economy and food security, health security for all, education for all, affordable housing for all and government accountability and fiscal decentralisation for a true federalism.
Transforming rural economies, ensure food security for all
Adesina said a better Africa must start with transforming rural economies, “that is because some 70% of the population lives there. Rural poverty is extremely high. At the heart of transforming rural economies is agriculture, the main source of livelihoods.”
“When rural economies falter, nations falter,” Adesina warned, “this leads to the spread of anarchy and terrorists who take advantage of the economic misery to entrench themselves.”
He highlighted how the African Development Bank Group is supporting a farm revolution at scale across the continent. “We have invested over $8.5 billion in agriculture in the past seven years which has impacted 250 million people.”
“The African Development Bank and development partners are providing $1.4 billion for the development of 25 Special Agro-Industrial Processing Zones in eleven countries,” he said.
In Nigeria alone, the Bank is developing these zones in eight of the country’s 36 states with $518 million. Another $1 billion will go into the second phase of the programme which will cover 23 more states.
The other four prgrammes include Healthcare for all, Education for all, Housing for all and Government accountability and fiscal decentralisation for a true federalism
Adesina is the fourth recipient of the Award. Past winners include lawyer Afe Babalola, writer and Nobel Laureate Wole Soyinka, and former South African President Thabo Mbeki.
The Chairman of the Obafemi Awolowo Prize for Leadership Selection Committee, Chief Emeka Anyaoku said the Bank Group president was the unanimous choice of the Foundation’s Selection Committee among many other eminent nominees.
According to the report distributed by the APO Group on behalf of African Development Bank Group (AfDB), many global figures sent congratulatory messages to Adesina for the award, including the President of the World Bank Group Ajay Banga, the Managing Director of the International Monetary Fund Kristalina Georgieva, former British Prime Minister Tony Blair; Chief Executive Officer of Agence Française de Développement Rémy Rioux; Chief Executive Officer of the Global Center on Adaptation Prof. Dr. Patrick Verkooijen, President Emeritus of the World Food Prize Foundation Ambassador Kenneth Quinn and the former UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon.
It added that the Chairman of the Obafemi Awolowo Prize for Leadership Foundation, and former President of Nigeria Yakubu Gowon said Adesina’s “widely acclaimed achievements as Nigeria’s Minister of Agriculture and two terms as President of the African Development Bank attest to his desirability as the recipient of the 2023 Obafemi Awolowo Prize for Leadership”.
And the Executive Director of the Obafemi Awolowo Foundation, Ambassador Dr. Tokunbo Awolowo-Dosumu, said Adesina, “possesses the attributes for the award to the highest degree/”
GIK/APA