Congo: African Development Bank’s 2023-2028 Country Strategy Paper sets developing sustainable infrastructure and improving economic governance as key priorities

ABIDJAN, Côte d’ivoire, 07 November 2023 -/African Media Agency(AMA)/-On 3 November 2023 in Abidjan, the Board of Directors of the African Development Bank Group approved the 2023-2028 Country Strategy Paper (CSP) for Congo. Over the next five years, the institution will provide support to the country to develop sustainable infrastructure that will help strengthen value chains with high growth potential and improve human capital. In addition, it will underpin financial and economic governance, thereby enhancing the business climate in Congo.

The Bank Group’s support will be concentrated in four different sectors: agriculture, transport, financial and economic governance, and human capital. An emphasis will also be placed on cross-sector issues, such as employment, climate change and gender. There will be an additional focus on improving efficiency, be it in the implementation of operations, increasing the synergy between human capital reforms and business climate reforms, or private sector development within agricultural value chains.

“The Bank will give priority to projects that improve agricultural productivity, job creation and access to electricity and roads, in particular rural roads to connect production areas to consumption centres,” said Serge N’Guessan, General Director for Central Africa at the African Development Bank. “It will also continue to conduct studies, provide technical assistance and build capacity.”

Within the framework of the first priority area, the Bank’s involvement aims to support the improvement of agricultural productivity and agribusiness, the development of value chains, and related agribusiness sectors. Agricultural value chains help to ensure food security, export diversification, job creation and social inclusion. The Bank’s backing will therefore focus on providing improved agricultural inputs and modern technology to increase the sector’s productivity.

The average yield of the principal crops is expected to rise: maize (1 to 3 tons per hectare), cassava (4.5 to 9 tons per hectare), soya (1.5 to 3 tons per hectare) and sorghum (0.5 to 3 tons per hectare). The rate of agricultural mechanisation is likely to increase by 20%, poultry imports should fall by 106,000 tons per year, fish imports by 32,000 tons, afforestation by 4,500 hectares and agroforestry by 10,000 hectares.

As for the second priority area, the Bank’s support will be targeted at strengthening institutional and human capacities in macroeconomic and financial governance, including fiscal policy, the raising of domestic funding and public debt management.

The ultimate aim is to increase the share of private investment in gross domestic product (GDP) from 16.4% in 2022 to 26.5% in 2025. Governance of the energy sector should also see improvement.

On 31 May 2023, the African Development Bank Group’s active portfolio in Congo comprised 10 projects, equating to total funding of $362.55 million.

Distributed by African Media Agency (AMA) on behalf of African Development Bank.

Source : African Media Agency (AMA)