African Development Bank (AfDB) group president Akinwumi Adesina says Africa must wean itself from aid dependency due to the dwindling global funding trend, adding that the era of free money is long gone.
In a statement following a lecture at National Open University of Nigeria on Friday, he called on African economies, including Malawi, to urgently chart their future through self-reliance, strategic partnerships and leveraging its vast natural resources.
For instance, following the freezing of funds from United States Agency for International Development (USaid), the US terminated contracts worth $230.4 million (nearly K494 billion) under the agency in Malawi.
Said Adesina: “The recent dismantling of the official development aid agency in the United States and similar anti-aid measures in other parts of Europe, means that the old development models that Africa has always relied on will no longer work.”
Adesina said Africa faces several challenges, including declining development aid, restrictive immigration policies, undervalued natural capital and the recent global tariff wars.
Minister of Finance and Economic Affairs Simplex Chithyola Banda earlier said following the USaid decision, government will ensure that all services regarding HIV and Aids continue to be offered in the country’s health system.
Centre for Social Concern project officer Kondwani Hara observed that the US decision has exposed vulnerabilities of Malawi’s economy.
Meanwhile, AfDB is leading the development of a new framework to re-estimate Africa’s gross domestic product based on the proper valuation of its vast natural capital.
