AfDB’s sovereign portfolio named most transparent globally

Ronald Owili
3 Min Read

The African Development Bank (AfDB) sovereign portfolio has emerged first out of 50 global development institutions in the 2024 Aid Transparency Index by Publish What You Fund.

The pan-African lender emerged top with a score of 98.8 for its good quality data publication followed by the InterAmerican Development Bank. In the ranking, World Bank International Development Association emerged fourth.

“I am delighted by this recognition from Publish What You Fund. It is a testament once again to the commitment of the Bank’s Board, management, and staff to continuously improve the disclosure of aid flows by providing consistent, high-quality, and easily accessible data,” said Dr. Akinwumi Adesina, President of the AfDB.

This year’s index assesses six sovereign (public sector) portfolios and six non-sovereign (private sector) portfolios of development finance institutions (DFIs).

“This achievement is especially significant given the new, more rigorous assessment standards and transparency requirements for development financial institutions. The rating of our sovereign portfolio as the most transparent development organization in the world for the second consecutive time, is simply extraordinary. I commend Publish What You Fund for the vital and much needed work it does, in making aid and development efforts more transparent and effective,” added Adesina.

According to the global campaign for aid and development transparency, AfDB’s Sovereign Portfolio demonstrated its commitment to publishing very good, high-quality data about its activities.

Publish What You Fund used as an example data published about the Zambia – Lusaka Sanitation Program – Climate Resilient Sustainable Infrastructure Project. The report commended the Bank for detailed publication of project objectives, impact appraisal documents, environmental studies and evaluation reports , a total of over 29 documents in both French and English.

“AfDB has demonstrated that progress can be made swiftly and effectively by adhering to best practices and ensuring the availability of information. The AfDB’s desire to provide useful and timely data doesn’t end with what we measure in the Index, we’re also impressed by their investment in Map Africa, a portal which helps stakeholders locate and learn about individual projects,” said Gary Forster, Publish What You Fund CEO.

The bank’s non-sovereign portfolio was assessed for the second time and separately in the 2024 Index.

Its non-sovereign portfolio ranked 13th among the 50 global development institutions under comparison.

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