African Development Bank Group President and African Union Commission Chairperson discuss Africa’s challenges and solutions at impromptu Dakar airport meeting

African Development Bank Group President Dr. Akinwumi A. Adesina was relaxing at Dakar's Blaise-Diagne International Airport VIP lounge with Senegal's Minister of Economy, Planning and Cooperation, Amadou Hott, on Wednesday, when another VIP transit passenger unexpectedly joined them. Adesina had just arrived in Dakar to start a three-day official visit at the invitation of President Macky Sall.

The other VIP was none other than African Union Commission Chairperson Moussa Faki Mahamat.

An unplanned, friendly and informal discussion ensued in a laid-back atmosphere, with the conversation going back and forth seamlessly between French and English. Free of officialdom, the conversation covered a range of important African issues, including Senegal's development agenda, infrastructure projects on the continent, vaccine production, regional integration. The African Development Bank, the African Union and the UN Economic Commission for Africa are working on a joint publication - an Index on Regional Integration in Africa. The three institutions are currently updating data on the status of regional integration, which represents an essential vector for development in Africa.

In essence, the impromptu coming together of the heads of the African Development Bank and the African Union translated to a meeting of the High 5s - the Bank's key priorities - and the African Union's Agenda 2063.

The men discussed the ongoing efforts to deal with the challenges of Covid-19, including the African Vaccine Acquisition Fund set up by the African Union in response to the pandemic-imposed vaccine emergency. Adesina has been vocal and active in bringing the bank's resources to the fight against the pandemic - particularly with its Covid-19 Response Facility - which has reduced many of Africa's recent economic gains. The Bank has also been supporting the African Union's African Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

The African Development Bank and the African Union are also working together through the Joint Secretariat Support Office (JSSO), a joint technical group for monitoring and evaluating Agenda 2063. The JSSO includes the African Development Bank, the African Union Commission, and the UN Economic Commission for Africa. It is also deals with African security issues, water, energy, climate change, among other challenges for the continent.