AfDB raises $11-billion for low-cost lending window, no word on US funding

The African Development Bank (AfDB) raised $11-billion for its fund that lends money to low-income countries on favourable terms, it said on Tuesday, surpassing the previous replenishment round’s figure but falling short of its initial target.

Officials at AfDB had initially aimed to raise $25-billion for the African Development Fund (ADF), which is replenished every three years, after raising $8.9-billion in 2022.

The AfDB, Africa’s biggest development lender, made the announcement after a two-day donor pledging conference in London, which was overshadowed by waning US engagement.

“In one of the most difficult global environments for development finance, our partners chose ambition over retrenchment, and investment over inertia,” Sidi Ould Tah, AfDB’s president, said in a statement.

Some 19 African nations, including Kenya, Zambia and Ivory Coast, made their first ever contributions to the fund, AfDB said, with African member states of the bank pledging $182.7-million.

The AfDB’s statement did not