Who will be Africa's next top banker?

The African Development Bank is meeting this week for their annual meeting and will decide who among the eight candidates will become the next president of the African Development Bank. Will the board of governors vote across regional lines or use other criteria? RFI speaks to a candidate and an African economic expert to find out more.

Donald Kaberuka, outgoing president of the African Development Bank Reuters/Rafael Marchante

“The main criteria should be based on qualifications, and not in terms of size of country or gender issues. It should be mainly based on qualification. The Nigerian candidate [Agriculture Minister Akinwumi Adesina] is also a strong one, based on our development financing needs. Coming from an agricultural background is an important criteria. [Dealing with] agricultural financing along the agricultural value chain of production should be supported in Africa if you really want to create sustainable growth and significantly reduce the poverty around the continent.” Ibrahima Aidara, economic governance manager at Open Society Institute for West Africa in Dakar, Senegal