AFRICA – The African Development Bank Group recently concluded a mission to review its East Africa Regional Integration Strategy Paper (EA-RISP 2023-2027) and evaluate the performance of the 2025 regional portfolio.
The mission took stock of the progress made in implementing the strategy, and identified opportunities to strengthen collaboration with regional stakeholders and enhance the impact and sustainability of ongoing and future operations.
The bank group delegation, led by Bubacarr Sankareh, East Africa lead operations advisor, held meetings with key regional stakeholders, including the African Union Commission and UNECA, the East African Community and Intergovernmental Authority on Development regional economic blocs, representatives from the Eastern Africa Power Pool, and business bodies including the East African Business Council and the Pan African Chamber of Commerce and Industry.
The meetings discussed development challenges that hinder effective regional integration. “The overarching development challenge for the region remains the slow pace of structural transformation, which hampers trade, creation of decent jobs, inclusive growth, and poverty reduction in the region,” said Sankareh.
He explained that the RISP was developed to address the region’s key development challenges by aligning with the bank’s overall strategy, development plans of regional member countries, and the African Union’s Agenda 2063.
The RISP is the bank’s regional programming instrument, guiding interventions to advance integration at a regional level. The bank’s regional strategy focuses on two priority areas: improving regional infrastructure—with a focus on energy, transport and ICT connectivity—and developing regional value chains to facilitate trade.
The current RISP has enabled major infrastructure projects, including phase one of the Tanzania–Burundi–DRC Standard Gauge Railway, the Burundi–Rwanda Integrated Development Project, and the Comoros Maritime Corridor Development and Trade Facilitation Project, all aimed at boosting transport connectivity, trade, and economic integration across the region. In addition, the Bank has supported technical assistance and policy dialogues with regional institutions, underscoring its adaptability and commitment to advancing regional priorities.
The acting chief executive officer of the East Africa Business Council, Adrian Njau, lauded the bank’s support for regional infrastructure development in energy and transport interconnectivity, as well as trade facilitation and value chain development. He said: “These projects have enabled regional integration, reduced cost of doing business and enhanced the competitiveness of products within the region.”
As of June 2025, the bank’s multinational operations in East Africa accounted for 36.6 percent of its commitments in the region, with 107 projects worth $6.3 billion. Since 2023, the portfolio has grown by $1.3 billion, driven by investments in transport, social, multi-sector, and environment.
This mission served as an opportunity to reflect on lessons learnt, identify priorities for the remaining strategy implementation period, and determine areas of improvement. The bank’s delegation included Eva Ruganzu, East Africa implementation support division manager; Samuel Kamara, chief regional program coordinator; Patrick Kanyimbo, chief regional integration coordinator; Emmanuel Nyirinkwaya, regional fragility and resilience officer, as well as the independent evaluation team, which is conducting case studies to draw broader lessons for the bank’s regional integration strategic framework.
