A delegation led by Solomane Koné, acting Director General of the African Development Bank Group for Central Africa, has completed a mission to Equatorial Guinea from April 1-11, 2025, strengthening dialogue and providing support for portfolio operations, with several strategic aspects of collaboration addressed.
The mission included meetings with Pedro Abeso Obiang Eyang, Deputy Minister of Finance and Budget, Clemente Engonga Nguema Onguene, Minister of Education, Juan José Ndong Tom, Minister of Agriculture, Livestock Farming, Forestry and the Environment, and Alfredo Mitogo Ada, Minister of Labour and Employment.
During the visit, a grant agreement for $ 531,480 was signed by Koné and Obiang Eyang to fund a study of a master plan for electricity production, transport and distribution for 2025-2040. The delegation also conducted ground inspections of infrastructure produced in connection with the fishing and aquaculture sector project.
At the Ministry of Agriculture, Koné reaffirmed the Bank’s commitment to supporting the National Agriculture and Fishing Pact, particularly through the Support for the Development of Value Chains in the Fisheries and Aquaculture Sector Project (PASPA), which aims to triple local fish production.
He shared observations from the field visit to the project’s fishing and aquaculture infrastructure sites, highlighting satisfactory progress with civil engineering works, including the provisional acceptance of 52 hydraulic pumps to improve drinking water access in several villages. Minister Ndong Tom expressed satisfaction with the project’s progress and promised adjustments in response to the observations.
At the Ministry of Education, the mission reiterated the Bank’s commitment to supporting employment promotion through two priority areas of its country strategy: “Promoting value chains with strong potential for growth and job creation” and “Developing human capital and governance to support inclusion.”
“Youth and women’s employment is at the heart of what we are doing in Equatorial Guinea as part of the country strategy. Our new human capital development project – which is currently being developed – also aims to integrate young people into the economic fabric,” said Director General Koné.
The new Strengthening Human Capital to Support Economic and Social Inclusion Project (PARCH) aims to develop human capital by building essential skills needed for diversification and economic growth. The education minister and the delegation agreed on next steps to accelerate the project’s submission to the Bank’s Board of Directors.
Minister Mitogo Ada highlighted the advantage of PARCH supporting the expansion of the “Impulso Profesional” programme, which aims to improve youth employability.
Working meetings with technical departments, state agencies, partners and project management units took place alongside the mission. At the Ministry of Finance, progress in the water and sanitation sector was reviewed, including the adoption of a decree creating a national company for managing water and sanitation in urban areas. This reform will include charging for previously free services, marking an important step in organizing the sector.
The mission also held talks with IMF representatives on progress of the Staff Monitored Program supporting Equatorial Guinea’s structural reforms, with 90 percent of the reforms implemented. The IMF praised the Bank’s collaboration through the Public Finance Modernization Support Project.
The African Development Bank’s portfolio in Equatorial Guinea is part of a strategic vision for 2023-2028, with USD 91.45 million split across six projects as of March 31, 2025, concentrated in agriculture and fishing (64.77 percent), governance (30.96 percent), and industry, ICTs, social affairs and energy (4.27 percent).
Source African Development Bank Group
