Speaking during a breakfast meeting with journalists on Monday, Adesina described his presidency as a demanding yet incredibly fulfilling journey.

“Leading the AfDB is not a job but a mission,” he said emphasising the all-encompassing nature of the role.

He highlighted the bank’s milestones achieved under his leadership, including the bank’s largest-ever capital increase, which grew from $93 billion in 2015 to $318 billion, and the successful replenishment of the African Development Fund, which raised $8.9 billion. These efforts, he noted, have positively impacted 500 million Africans.

Adesina also highlighted the success of High 5s, the bank’s core development priorities launched at the start of his tenure in 2015. These priorities, Light up and Power Africa, Feed Africa, Industrialise Africa, Integrate Africa, and Improve the Quality of Life for the People of Africa, have touched the lives of over 565 million people.

Remarking on the transformation that had taken place in the bank under his leadership, he said, “The African Development Bank you have today is not the African Development Bank you used to have. This is a global institution now.”

He further advised his successor, “The responsibility of that leader is to build on the past, to look far into the future, and to find within themselves what courage it takes to stand up for Africa’s interest. To make sure that Africa’s voice is never silenced on issues that matter globally and where it matters globally.”

The AfDB outgoing president appreciated the media for their continuous support throughout his presidency and expressed gratitude for the opportunity to serve, describing it as “the greatest honour of his life”.

Adesina informed President Buhari that the African Development Bank has designed a $1.5 billion Africa Emergency Food Production Plan to support countries to rapidly-produce around 38 million tonnes of food to mitigate the effect of the war on food prices. This will include 11 million tonnes of wheat; 18 million tonnes of maize; 6 million tonnes of rice; and 2.5 million tonnes of soybeans.

“Nigeria is a top priority under the emergency food production plan,” Adesina said, adding that the strategy will help the country produce 9.5 million tonnes of food. The initiative will support the country’s 5 million smallholder farmers during the wet season of 2022 and 1 million across 10 northern states during the dry season of 2022/2023, the Bank Chief estimated.

Adesina emphasized: “Urgent actions are needed to prevent a food crisis in Africa.” He reaffirmed that the Bank “is fully prepared to meet this new challenge head-on.” President Buhari said his government was committed to encouraging farmers to increase yields and ensure there is an adequate food supply in Nigeria.

The Nigerian President commended the African Development Bank for the plan to “swiftly and boldly” mitigate the impact of the Russia-Ukraine war on food supplies.

Russia and Ukraine dominate exports of wheat and maize to Africa. With the disruption of supplies arising from the war, Africa now faces a shortage of at least 30 million metric tons of food, especially for wheat, maize, and soybeans imported from both countries.

Official figures estimate that the price of wheat has soared in Africa by over 45% since the war began. Fertilizer prices have gone up by 300%, and the continent faces a fertilizer shortage of 2 million metric tons. If this is not made up, food production in Africa will decline by 20% and the continent could lose over $11 billion in value of food production.

The African Development Bank’s emergency food plan is currently before the Bank’s Board of Directors for approval. It is set for implementation by the end of May 2022 and will cover all African member countries of the Bank.

The African Development Bank is also supporting Nigeria in establishing Special Agro-Industrial Processing Zones (SAPZ), which the Nigerian president is due to launch soon.

Both parties agreed that putting the African Development Bank’s emergency food plan and SAPZ initiatives into action in Nigeria, which is Africa’s biggest economy and most populous nation, will increase food production, lower food price inflation and transform the agriculture sector. This will, in turn, ensure food security and create jobs.