World Bank Vice President for the Africa Region Visits Togo

LOME , September 5, 2008 — World Bank Vice President for the Africa Region, Ms. Obiageli Katryn Ezekwesili, will pay an official visit to Togo from September 10–11, 2008.

The main objective of this visit is to strengthen the partnership between the World Bank and Togo. During her stay in Togo, Ms. Ezekwesili will discuss current efforts to revive the Togolese economy with the country’s authorities. Discussions will also focus on strengthening the World Bank’s re-engagement program in Togo, and how the institution can best help the country to address the challenges it faces.

Meetings with the country’s highest authorities are not the only items on the visit agenda. The Vice President is a proponent of dialogue with all of the socioeconomic development actors in the countries she visits. To this end, a number of meetings are planned with development partners, civil society, the private sector, and the press to discuss matters relevant to the future of the entire African continent.

Ms. Ezekwesili arrives in Togo as part of a tour that has taken her to Ghana, Guinea, and Côte d’Ivoire. In Ghana, she participated in the High-Level Forum on Aid Effectiveness in Africa. After Togo, she will travel to Benin, the final stop on this Africa tour.

Obiageli Ezekwesili, a Nigerian national, joined the World Bank as Vice President for the Africa Region in May 2007. Throughout her career, she has gained a wealth of experience in the public and private sectors, and in civil society. She has held a number of positions, including: (i) Auditor and management consultant; (ii) Director for Africa, Transparency International; (iii) Special Assistant to the President of Nigeria with responsibility for Budget Monitoring and the Price Intelligence Unit; (iv) Minister of Solid Minerals Development of Nigeria; and (v) Minister of Education of Nigeria.

The Vice President’s visit to Togo is intended to support the World Bank’s re-engagement in the country. The last visit to Togo by a World Bank Vice President for Africa took place in 1997.

 

For more information on the World Bank’s activities in Sub-Saharan Africa, please visit:
http://web.worldbank.org/africa

For more information on the World Bank’s activities in Togo, please visit:
www.worldbank.org/togo