Akinwumi Adesina, President, African Development Bank (AfDB), has said that Africa will need 56 million new homes to close the housing gap on the continent.
Adesina, who noted that challenges are not unique to Africa, emphasised that the continent has various investment opportunities that the world needs to see.
According to him, this made it crucial for the launch of the Africa Investment Forum (AIF) to showcase these opportunities and attract investments, as the forum brings together financial ecosystems from Africa, Europe, America, and Asia.
The AfDB president said that in agriculture, 65 per cent of the world’s remaining arable land is in Africa, with a young population of 477 million people under the age of 35, who will be tomorrow’s workforce. He remarked that while the world transitions toward an ageing population, Africa grows younger.
“Africa is the world’s fastest-organizing region. Housing demand will surge – approximately 56 million new homes must be built, representing a significant market opportunity.
The AfDB leader, who has built countless bridges between Africa and Europe, America, and Asia, shared these insights on his legacy, global challenges, multilateralism, private sector development, and more in an exclusive interview published on AfDB website, even as he enters his final months at the helm of Africa’s leading financial institution after a decade of service.
On what kind of institution his successor will inherit this May, Adesina stated that while the bank turns 60 this year, he is 64. He further explained that it was established in 1964 when the bank had just 10 employees, but it now has over 2,000 staff.
