
The Board of Directors of the African Development Bank (AfDB) has approved Nigeria’s Country Strategy Paper (CSP) 2020-2024, which builds on the successes and challenges of the 2013-2019 edition.
The bank’s Communications and External Relations Department in a statement on Friday said the strategy was approved on May 27.
It stated that the approval also incorporated emerging developmental realities and opportunities shaping Nigeria’s political and economic landscape, including the post-COVID-19 period.
The statement quoted Mr Ebrima Faal, Senior Director for AfDB in Nigeria, as re-affirming the institution’s support for Nigeria’s socio-economic advancement.
“In the implementation of the CSP, the Bank will also support Nigeria to address economic shocks associated with the COVID-19 pandemic and oil price shocks.
“We will do this by focusing our interventions in sectors that will strengthen public health infrastructure and accelerate efforts towards economic transformation and diversification of export earnings and fiscal revenues from oil,” Faal said.
The bank noted that the 2020-2024 CSP identified supporting infrastructure development and promoting social inclusion through agribusiness and skills development as key priority areas for Nigeria.
According to AfDB, these priorities have been selected to leverage Nigeria’s rich endowment of natural and human resources toward transforming the lives of its people.