Encountering someone you have idolised for years can feel surreal and exciting. It could easily be a moment where your personal admiration for the person’s accomplishments or qualities comes to life, potentially leading to a feeling of awe or a desire to connect further.
That best describes my edifying encounter with Dr. Akinwumi Adesina, who is widely lauded for his visionary leadership and passion for Africa’s transformation.
The key lesson I learnt from meeting the great son of Africa is that courage is essential for our survival. Indeed courage is key to life itself.
I had approached the African Development Bank team at the 2024 Spring Meetings of the World Bank Group and International Monetary Fund in Washington D.C to request for a brief audience with Dr. Akinwumi Adesina.
I did not get a positive response to my request and the next step was to leverage my contacts at the office of the Executive Director at the World Bank to make it possible.
Instead, I decided to attend one of the World Bank’s flagship events, which had Dr. Akinwumi Adesina as a panelist under the theme ‘Energizing Africa; What Will it Take to Accelerate?’
In spite of all the obstacles, I finally found myself in the holding area for the panelists/speakers of the event, hoping to have an audience with the man who believes a novel concept of youth entrepreneurship and investment banks will be a game-changer for Africa’s underinvested youth. I treated myself to some snacks and occasionally said a prayer, all in anticipation of meeting Dr. Adesina.
During the waiting period, I engaged some members of the organising team who became aware of my purpose there. I gently reminded the team of my mission there when the moderator announced the end of the panel discussion and made sure my tie was well fixed and looked good for the great moment.
Lo and behold, Dr. Adesina walked toward my direction accompanied by one of the organisers with his customary Duchenne smile, you can imagine that moment of ecstasy for me.
We exchanged pleasantries and I quickly commended him on his amazing performance on the panel, recounting his suggestion on the need to develop Africa’s youth in order to make a meaningful contribution to the economic development of the continent.
That must have caught his attention as he held my hand while giving me insights into the tremendous opportunity the continent has due to its vast youth population.
He asked about my mission at the Spring Meetings and further encouraged me to be deliberate and intentional in everything I do while responding to my question on his journey to becoming a globally recognised development economist and agricultural development expert, with more than 30 years of international experience. Our conversation ended by exchanging contacts and introducing me to one of his staff to set up another meeting.
Dr. Akinwumi A. Adesina is a World Food Prize Laureate and Sunhak Peace Prize Laureate who has distinguished himself in driving a bold agenda to reform the African Development Bank and accelerate Africa’s development.
He is the eighth elected President of the African Development Bank Group and won the prestigious Rockefeller Foundation Social Science Fellowship in 1988, which launched him into his international career.
A prolific writer, Dr. Adesina has authored over 70 scholarly publications on policy, agricultural development and African development issues.
He caught my attention in August 2020 when he was re-elected to serve a second five-year term as President of the African Development Bank Group by the Board of Governors of the bank with a record 100 percent of votes of all regional and non-regional members of the bank.
Following his re-election, I have been a keen follower of the former Nigerian Minister of Agriculture from 2011-2015, who turned the agriculture sector of Nigeria around within four years.
He was first elected as President of the African Development Bank in May 2015 for a five-year term, during which the bank maintained its AAA-ratings by all major global credit rating agencies for five years in a row.
Dr. Adesina graduated with a Bachelor’s Degree in Agricultural Economics (First Class Honours) from the University of Ife (now Obafemi Awolowo University), Nigeria, in 1981.
He was the first student to obtain a First Class Honours in Agricultural Economics in the history of the university since its establishment in 1960. In addition, he holds a Master’s degree (1985) and a PhD in Agricultural Economics (1988) from Purdue University, USA, where he won the Outstanding PhD thesis award for that year.
Under Dr. Adesina’s leadership, the African Development Bank was ranked in 2021 by Publish What You Fund as the 4th most transparent institution in the world.
In addition, the African Development Fund, which is the concessionary lending institution of the African Development Bank Group, was ranked as 2nd in the world out of all 49 multilateral and bilateral lending institutions in the world – including all those in developed countries.
>>>Chris is a thought leader in Marketing Communications, Stakeholder Relationship Management Professional and International Cooperation Specialist. Over the last 15 years, he has made tremendous impact within Africa’s corporate communications and creative arts sectors. He can be reached at [email protected] / 233 20 854 1480
The post Chris Koney’s Column: My enlightening encounter with Dr. Akinwumi A. Adesina appeared first on The Business & Financial Times.
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