Publish What You Fund, the global campaign for aid and development transparency, has again named the African Development Bank’s (AfDB) sovereign portfolio as the most transparent.

The bank, in a statement on Tuesday, said its portfolio emerged first out of 50 global development institutions with a top score of 98.8 in its 2024 Aid Transparency Index.

 “The Bank’s sovereign portfolio climbed four places in the ranking in 2022 to top the Index, setting the standard for high-quality data publication.

” For a second time running, the result highlights the Bank’s continued effort and prioritisation of good quality data publication.

“The Aid Transparency Index has tracked the transparency of the largest international aid organisations over the last 12 years,” it said.

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the 2024 Index assessed six sovereign (public sector) portfolios and six non-sovereign (private sector) portfolios of development finance institutions (DFIs).

 The sovereign portfolios of development finance institutions occupy three of the top five positions in the ranking with AfDB coming first, the InterAmerican Development Bank (IDB) second and World Bank International Development Association fourth.

The statement quoted the AfDB President Akinwumi Adesina, as expressing delight at the recognition.

“It is a testament once again to the commitment of the Bank’s board, management, and staff to continuously improve the disclosure of aid flows by providing consistent, high-quality, and easily accessible data.

“This achievement is especially significant given the new, more rigorous assessment standards and transparency requirements for development financial institutions.

“The rating of our sovereign portfolio as the most transparent development organisation in the world for the second consecutive time, is simply extraordinary.

” I commend Publish What You Fund for the vital and much needed work it does, in making aid and development efforts more transparent and effective,” Adesina said.

The Chief Executive Officer, Publish What You Fund, Gary Forster, said the AfDB’s stride demonstrated its commitment to publishing very good, high-quality data about its activities.

He commended the bank for detailed publication of its project objectives, impact appraisal documents, environmental studies and evaluation reports, totalling over 29 documents in both French and English.

“We congratulate the AfDB as it continues to lead the Aid Transparency Index with its sovereign portfolio.

“This is the result of a persistent focus on transparency, meaningful involvement with the Aid Transparency Index process, and pro-active engagement with the IATI community.

“AfDB has demonstrated that progress can be made swiftly and effectively by adhering to best practices and ensuring the availability of information,” he said.

According to Forster, the bank’s desire to provide useful and timely data does not end with what we measure in the Index.

He said :”This year’s Index focuses on the prominence of development finance institutions as vehicles for international aid.

 “The ongoing Multilateral Development Bank (MDB) reform agenda promises to increase resources, allow higher risk investments, streamline business processes and improve coordination between banks.

“In most cases the growth of the banks will be from greater borrowing on the capital markets rather than use of aid money.”

The AfDB’s non-sovereign portfolio was assessed for the second time and separately in the 2024 Index.

Its non-sovereign portfolio ranked 13th among the 50 global development institutions under comparison.