Six days after receiving an honorary degree from the Duke University, the African Development Bank (AfDB) President, Akinwumi Adesina, has been conferred another doctorate degree by the Addis Ababa University, Ethiopia.
The AfDB president was honoured for his great contributions to the field of economics, with Ethiopia’s Prime Minister, Abiy Ahmed Ali, lauding him as a ‘true son of Africa’ at the award ceremony.
The agricultural economist, who attended the event at Friendship Square with his wife, Grace, said he was greatly honoured.
‘I was greatly honoured to be awarded an honorary doctorate degree by Addis Ababa University, ranked No. [six] in Africa and No. [one] in East Africa. My wife, Grace, [and] I were delighted to be with my brother Prime Minister [Abiy Ahmed Ali] of Ethiopia. Thank you @AddisAbabaUni’, he tweeted.
The Duke University had on 08 May, 2022, presented the AfDB chief with an honorary Doctor of Humane Letters in recognition of his achievements in agriculture and the bank’s innovative High-5 development priorities.
Akinwumi, who has a PhD in Agricultural Economics, is a globally renowned development economist, with more than 30 years of international experience.
Under his watch, the AfDB achieved the highest capital increase since its establishment in 1964, as shareholders from 80 member countries raised the general capital from $93 billion to a historic $208 billion in October 2019.
Also, the bank responded swiftly to the Covid-19 pandemic in 2020, launching a landmark U.S.$3 billion Covid-19 Social Bond followed by a Crisis Response Facility of U.S.$10 billion.
Photo source: Akinwumi Adesina
