Malpass is travelling to sub-Saharan Africa, where he will visit Niger and Togo. This trip comes four years after travelling to Madagascar, his first official tour on the African continent, and before the end of his mandate at the World Bank in June.
In Niamey, Malpass will meet with President Mohamed Bazoum to discuss the World Bank Group’s development program and its support for the country and the broader region. He will also participate in a briefing on security in the Sahel with Prime Minister Ouhoumoudou Mahamadou and several members of the government.
However, the highlight of the visit will be Malpass’s “positioning speech” ahead of the Bank and IMF Spring Meetings in Washington.
The choice of Niger is significant, given that it faces many of the challenges that the World Bank intends to tackle, including security, demography, climate, and education.
The World Bank Group has quadrupled its resources in the Sahel over the past decade, and between 2020 and 2023, it has mobilized over $8.5bn, making it the largest contributor to development in the region.
After his trip to Niger, Malpass will travel to Togo for less than 48 hours, focusing on food security, growth, and resilience in the Gulf of Guinea countries. While in Lomé, the capital of Togo, the WB president will discuss security issues in the Gulf of Guinea countries, as well as the food crisis, to which fertilizers could be a sustainable solution. An official ceremony will be held at the Port of Lomé, under the auspices of the Prime Minister, in the presence of several ministers where fertilizer will be given to government officials.
The visit will end in both Niger and Togo with a joint press conference with the head of state.
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