AfDB vice president, Jennifer Blanke resigns, thanks Akinwunmi Adesina

Dr Jennifer Blanke has tendered her resignation from the post of Vice President for Agriculture, Human and Social Development of the African Development Bank (AfDB).

This was disclosed on Wednesday in a statement issued by the Communications and External Relations Department of the AfDB.

It reads: “I thank President Akinwumi Adesina for his strong leadership, guidance and support which have undoubtedly motivated and helped my team and I to play a key role in the transformation of the bank.

“I feel privileged to have been given an opportunity to contribute to the bank’s agenda for accelerating Africa’s social and economic transformation.

“I am leaving purely for family reasons to rejoin my family in Switzerland after a very fulfilling time at the bank. I will miss the bank and the excellent team we have built.

“I will continue to strongly support the bank from wherever I am,” she stated.

In response, Adesina thanked Blanke by revealing that the outgoing vice-president moved “the needle on so many fronts especially in the areas of food security, women financial empowerment and job creation”.

Before her resignation, Blanke who joined the bank in 2017 had led a number of key programmes of the bank. She will be leaving the position by July 4.