Africa faces immense challenges in adequate and skilled human capital to produce quality statistics for evidence-based policymaking, says Tinfissi-Joseph Ilboudo, Officer in Charge of the African Centre for Statistics.

Relying on international financial support to produce critical information for and about Africa is impeding statistical development, he told delegates attending the Expert’s segment of the 2025 ECA Conference of Ministers.

“We need sustainable funding of data systems to ensure we are tackling the right issues,” he said.

Illoudo underlined the importance of data governance and quality statistics to drive informed evidence-based policymaking, something that is currently under threat as a result of a lack of capacity.

Outdated statistical methods often do not reflect African realities, he said, leading to the production of data that may not accurately represent local conditions.

The big question for the future of the statistics ecosystem is how African statistical agencies can use artificial intelligence and new data sources to tackle the new priorities in the national, regional and international development agencies.

The African Institute for Development and Economic Planning, the ECA’s training arm, provided training for 5,000 people in 34 courses in 2024 – more than the 3,000 it initially planned to, said its director, Karima Bounemra Ben Soltane. She said programmes were being designed in response to member states’ concerns and aligned to their development needs.

In her report back on the Institute’s activities over the last year, she said that based on a needs assessment, IDEP now has courses for both private and public sector actors. These include courses on digital transformation and free trade.

“A few years ago, we started dealing with trade negotiations and trade policies. We have increasingly adapted our training to the launching of the AFCFTA and its implementation,” she said.

She said it was important for countries to share experiences on what has worked and what is not working in terms of policies and other areas and IDEP could play a role.

The UN Economic Commission for Africa (ECA) has stressed the urgent need for a more coordinated regional strategy to achieve food security in Eastern Africa while tackling the enduring challenges of trade barriers.

This was emphasized during a side event held at the 57th session of the ECA’s Conference of African Ministers of Finance, Planning, and Economic Development. The event, entitled “Food Security and Cross-Border Trade: Navigating Challenges and Opportunities Amid the Implementation of the Agreement Establishing the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA),” was organized by the ECA’s Subregional Office for Eastern Africa and Eastern Africa Trade Information and Negotiations Institute (SEATINI). It brought together senior officials and experts to discuss the dynamics of food security and cross-border trade within the context of the AfCFTA.

Speakers at the event highlighted that while the Eastern Africa region has recently experienced a growing food trade deficit, it is not that large, representing just 0.3% of regional GDP and, with the right policies, achieving collective food security is an attainable goal. Promoting greater regional trade is crucial to attaining this objective.

Kenya’s President William Samoei Ruto has conferred the country’s highest honour, Chief of the Order of the Golden Heart CGH, on the President of the African Development Bank Group, Dr Akinwumi Adesina.

Dr Adesina becomes the 20^th recipient of the honour that was established in 1967 and first awarded to Kenya’s founding father and former President, Jomo Kenyatta. Others include globally renowned leaders such as former UN Secretary General Kofi Annan, South Africa’s Nelson Mandela, Queen Elizabeth II of the United Kingdom, Uganda’s Yoweri Museveni and Kenya’s subsequent Presidents Daniel arap Moi, Mwai Kibaki, Uhuru Kenyatta and Dr Ruto.

During a colourful investiture ceremony at Nairobi’s State House, President Ruto praised Dr Adesina’s distinguished service, commitment, and passion for the economic development of Kenya and Africa.

President Ruto congratulated Adesina and told him, “You are amazing. You are a great leader. You deserve this honour and investiture.” (Press Release)