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Akinwumi Adesina Quotes
b. 1960 Nigeria
Akinwumi Adesina (born 6 February 1960) is a Nigerian economist who served as the President of the African Development Bank from 2015 to 2025. He previously served as Nigeria's Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development.
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When you export raw materials, that is the door to poverty.
To industrialize, Africa must solve its major challenge with very low access to electricity.
Africa must act fast to solve big problems, invest in youth and curb migration.
Together, let our roots of prosperity grow downwards and bear fruit upwards.
Africa cannot rely on the benevolence of others; investment is the strategy. Hard-nosed investments bringing in private capital are necessary to unlock Africa's assets.
Serving as President of the African Development Bank Group has been the greatest honor of my life. It has been a decade of relentless purpose, of enduring passion, and of tireless service.
Every time that I see a problem, my approach is not to just complain that people aren’t giving you enough; you have to figure out some innovation that will allow you to address the problem. That is what we have done for climate change.
We are simplifying procedures, we’re holding ourselves accountable in terms of how we report, we’re communicating, and we are also playing our part in the global commitments that have been made.
I do not seek aid for Africa. I seek investments in Africa.
Poverty is not a statistic. There's a mother, there's a child, there's a farmer, there's a rural community that needs access to electricity, to water, to sanitation, to health. You can't just depend on the benevolence of others.
This is not a job. If anyone is looking for a job, please don't take it. This is not a job. This is a mission.
Why can’t we have Zuckerbergs coming out of Africa? Why can’t we have Bill Gates coming out of Africa?
The success of the African Continental Free Trade Area depends on closing Africa’s infrastructure deficits
For me, inequality is not something that is a theoretical concept. I went to a village school in which I had to walk kilometers to go find water. And so, I know very well how that is.
I’m impatient with Africa’s underdevelopment, and I think we need to move much faster. Why should everything good in African people’s lives be in the future? We’ve got to be able to solve big problems very quickly because the poor can’t wait.
My wife Grace and staff would tell you, for ten years I have had no life. Completely zero. I worked every single day. Every single step.
I look at all the commercial banks in Africa, and I see that we’re not lending to young people. All our young people are flying out, and that makes me ashamed as the president of the African Development Bank. I can’t take it.
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