Ghana’s Deputy Minister of Finance, Thomas Nyarko Amprem, has called on development partners and participating countries to scale up their commitments to the African Development Fund (ADF) as the final pledging meeting for the Fund’s 17th general replenishment cycle (ADF-17) opened in London on Monday.

Speaking at the high-level meeting, he described the Fund as a critical financing instrument for reducing vulnerability and accelerating development across Africa.

“The African Development Fund remains a strategic instrument of the Bank Group to reduce vulnerability on the continent,” Mr Amprem said, urging donors and member countries to “do more” to ensure the Fund is adequately resourced to meet Africa’s growing development needs.

He emphasised that concessional financing remains vital for countries facing fiscal constraints and limited access to international capital markets.

The London meeting has been marked by an unprecedented surge in commitments from African countries, with the President of the African Development Bank Group, Sidi Ould Tah, noting a more than threefold increase in the number and volume of African contributions.

“They send a clear signal: Africa is not only a beneficiary of the ADF; it is a co-investor in its own future,” Dr Ould Tah said, describing the development as without precedent.

Dr Ould Tah, participating in his first ADF replenishment cycle as President of the Bank Group, stressed the investment value of the Fund, noting its ability to mobilise additional resources.

“This replenishment is not about aid. It is about investment with measurable returns. Each dollar invested in the African Development Fund unlocks more than $2.50 in co-financing and private capital,” he stated, adding that ADF-17 aligns with his “Four Cardinal Points” agenda on access to capital, financial sovereignty, demographic opportunity, and resilient infrastructure.

The meeting, co-hosted by the United Kingdom and Ghana at the headquarters of the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD), also drew strong backing from key partners.

UK Minister of State for International Development, Baroness Jenny Chapman, pledged her country’s continued support, while the President of the Arab Bank for Economic Development in Africa (BADEA), Abdullah Almusalbeeh, announced plans to commence co-financing cooperation with the ADF.

Established in 1972, the African Development Fund finances projects in infrastructure, agriculture, energy, water, health, and education through three-year replenishment cycles.