The African Development Bank played a critical role in supporting millions of people across the continent, affected by the impact of the Covid19 pandemic in 2020. This is according to its latest Annual Development Effectiveness Review.
The pandemic caused fiscal deficits to double and indebtedness to rise sharply, reducing the capacity of African countries to invest in economic recovery. The African Development Bank responded swiftly with a Covid-19 Response Facility that provided $3.6 billion in emergency budget support. The funding went into key areas such as health, social protection, and economic assistance, benefitting 12.3 million vulnerable households across 31 countries.
For instance, in Côte d’Ivoire, Ghana and Senegal the Bank helped to subsidize water and electricity bills for vulnerable households. In Sierra Leone, it supported the training and protection of 11,000 frontline health workers. With the Bank’s support, Ethiopia’s daily Covid19 testing capacity quadrupled. And in Morocco, the Bank helped the country upgrade health infrastructure, allowing for efficient patient care.