- Safiu Kehinde
Former Mauritania’s Minister of Finance, Sidi Ould Tah, has emerged as the new President of the African Development Bank Group (AfDB).
With Nigeria’s Akinwumi Adesina’s two terms which spanned across ten years coming to an end by September, the organization held fresh election during its Annual Meetings in Abidjan, Côte d’Ivoire on Thursday.
Sidi emerged winner of the election, marking the beginning of a new era as he takes over from Adesina.
According to the AfDB, Tah was elected by the Bank’s Board of Governors, comprising Finance and Economy Ministers or Central Bank Governors of the Bank Group’s 81 regional and non-regional member countries.
The results were announced by Niale Kaba, Minister of Planning and Development for Côte d’Ivoire, and Chairman of the Board of Governors of the Bank Group.
As contained in the group’s electoral guideline, the winning candidate is required to obtain at least 50.01% of both the regional and non-regional votes.
Tah contested against four other candidates approved by the Board of Governors Steering Committee.
Alongside the ex-Mauritanian Finance Minister, other candidates in the list which was officially announced on 21 February 2025, include Amadou Hott (Senegal), Samuel Maimbo (Zambia), Mahamat Abbas Tolli (Chad), and Bajabulile Swazi Tshabalala (South Africa).
Following his emergence as the winner, Tah will assume office on 1 September 2025, for a five-year term, replacing Adesina.
A Mauritanian national, Tah brings over 35 years of experience in African and international finance. He served as president of the Arab Bank for Economic Development in Africa (BADEA) for 10 years from 2015, where he led a full transformation that quadrupled the Bank’s balance sheet, secured a AAA rating, and positioned it among the top-rated development banks focused on Africa.
According to AfDB, the ex-Minister of Economic Affairs and Finance of Mauritania held senior roles in multilateral institutions and has led crisis response, financial reform, and innovative resource mobilization for Africa, including the establishment of BADEA’s $1 billion callable capital program for African MDBs.