Over the decade running up to 2025, projects financed by the African Development Bank Group have provided breakthrough access to drinking water and sanitation for 94 million people, right across Africa. In 2024 alone, Bank Group-funded initiatives facilitated access to drinking water for 3.5 million people and to improved sanitation services for 350,000 others living on the continent.
From 2015 to 2025, the Bank's actions have helped to train more than 4 million people in various sectors and have provided better access to education for 2.5 million, thereby contributing to the long-term development and prosperity of African countries. In addition, over 5.1 million direct jobs have been created courtesy of the Bank's work. The implementation of the Bank's five strategic priorities, the "High 5", particularly that of "improving the quality of life of Africans", is progressing well despite the level of effort required individually and collectively by all the continent's governments.
On a visit to Lesotho in March 2025, Bank Group President Akinwumi Adesina was able to gauge the impact of the institution's actions in this landlocked southern African country. At Sekete Primary School, he met pupils who were delighted to see drinking water flowing freely from their taps. The students, who used to walk a kilometre and a half to fetch water from uncovered wells, now have access to drinking water via the Lesotho Rural Water Supply and Sanitation Project, financed to the tune of $9.83 million by the African Development Fund, the Bank Group's concessional window.
"As a child who grew up in a very poor environment, I understand first-hand the challenges many children face," recalled the Bank President in Sekete. "I remember times without proper water and sanitation, experiences that have driven my life's work to improve conditions for African children."
With the Annual Meetings of the African Development Bank Group - scheduled for 26-30 May in Abidjan, Côte d'Ivoire, on the theme "Making the most of Africa's capital to foster its development" - just around the corner, Adesina's poignant account underscores the essential and transformative link between education and basic infrastructure, particularly water and sanitation. This theme highlights the strategic importance of human capital in speeding up the continent's development. Acknowledging that Africa's wealth lies in its people, the focus will be firmly placed on investing in education, health and youth training. By improving inhabitants' quality of life, African countries can unlock their economic potential, build resilience and stimulate inclusive growth. Developing human capital is also essential for creating decent jobs, reducing inequalities and encouraging local innovation.
These issues are even more vital in an international environment blighted by geopolitical uncertainty, and in a world where structural transformation requires appropriate skills, as well as governance that is focused on the needs of citizens. The discussions at the Annual Meetings will therefore aim to chart a sustainable course for a prosperous, self-sufficient future founded on reform and the harnessing of the continent's internal resources.
In Benin, for example, the Bank has stepped up its investment in improving living conditions for the population through the Programme for Achieving Drinking Water Security to Build Resilience in Rural Areas. The goal of this programme is to provide drinking water for 965,000 people and to generate jobs for more than 2,400 young people (38% of whom are women). Backed to the tune of €75.63 million by the African Development Bank, it also benefits from €43 million from the Africa Growing Together Fund, co-financed with the People's Bank of China.
In Malawi, the Nkhata Bay Town Water Supply and Sanitation Project, supported by the Bank, has made it possible to give access to 91.94% of the local population, compared with 37% previously, while increasing the time during which water is available from 16 hours to 23.5 hours a day.
Flood reduction
In Cameroon, investment by the African Development Bank has significantly reduced flooding in Yaoundé. In 2022, just three floods struck the Central African country, compared with 15 the previous year. The project, backed by the Bank, has developed a flood prevention and management plan for the capital city, with the construction of regulation basins to reduce waterflow from the Mfoundi River and the installation of a network of hydro-meteorological measuring equipment. As a result, very few cases of flooding have been recorded in the last few years in Cameroon, where the rainy season would regularly cause disasters.
This is also the case in Côte d'Ivoire, which received a €48.8 million loan from the African Development Bank in 2021 to finance the Project to Improve Sanitation and the Living Environment in the Autonomous District of Abidjan. This was a continuation of the Gourou Integrated Watershed Management Project, which was funded by the Bank and closed in December 2017. The project led to better regulation of rainwater drainage in the Ivoirian capital and, most importantly, reduced deadly flooding at the Indénié crossroads.
Mechanisms to meet challenges
To meet the challenge of providing access to drinking water and sanitation for all, the African Development Bank Group has been able to turn to the African Water Facility. Managed by the Bank, the Facility has raised $2.1 billion for 148 water and sanitation projects since its establishment in 2006. Its projects have improved access to sanitation for 11.3 million people, provided drinking water for 23.2 million Africans, and equipped two million hectares for irrigation. For 2025, the Facility plans to undertake at least 14 new projects, including four under the auspices of the African Urban Sanitation Investment Initiative.
At its 2025 Annual Meetings in Abidjan, the African Development Bank Group will reiterate, now more than ever, the importance of harnessing the continent's financial, natural and human resources to accelerate its economic transformation.
