The annual meetings of the African Development Bank Group (AfDB) are now scheduled to take place in Accra in May 2022. Ghana’s capital has previously been expected to host the meetings last year in a physical setting, but with covid-19 still disrupting continental travel, the meetings were held virtually, for the second year in a row.

While these are is the first-in-person annual meetings since Malabo in 2019, they will be held in a hybrid format with governors representing 54 African countries and 27 other nations who oversee the African Development Bank and the African Development Fund (ADF) meeting at the Accra International Conference Centre while other participants will join in virtually. Attendees will also celebrate the 50th anniversary of the ADF.

The 2022 annual meetings will be hosted by the outgoing Chairperson of the Board of Governors, Ken Ofori-Atta, Ghana’s Minister for Finance and the theme of the annual meetings is Achieving Climate Resilience and a Just Energy Transition for Africa. This is at a time when in South Africa, homes, highways, bridges have been damaged or swept away by floods and nearly 400 have died in what President Cyril Ramaphosa said was “a disaster of catastrophic proportions” while in Eastern Africa, the Intergovernmental Authority on Development (IGAD) has warned that rains will fail for the fourth consecutive year.

 In terms of climate finance, the AfDB will support transitions to non-coal and non-nuclear projects including hydro-generation, geothermal, gas, wind, and solar – and countries will be invited to put forward bankable projects for financing to be arranged. However, with the continent still energy-starved, countries that want to pursue coal as part of their energy-mix plans, can do so but with financing from other sources. 

The meetings will have knowledge events to promote discussion of policy and development of the continent. Some will be on building digital economies,  green jobs for youth & women in post-covid Africa and supporting resilience in agri-food systems with a focus on rural economies.