Blog by Ony Soa Ratsifandrihamanana, Africa Regional Coordinator
Stepping into my new role as Africa Regional Coordinator for the Coalition for Human Rights in Development, I travelled to attend the Annual Meetings of the African Development Bank Group (AfDB) in Nairobi, from May 27-31. Things didn’t go as planned.
An Opportunity to Engage
The AfDB Group’s website describes the Annual Meetings as “a unique opportunity for knowledge dissemination among high-level decision makers in Africa, key officials of bilateral and multilateral Development Agencies, leading academics, and representatives of non-governmental organizations, civil society, and the private sector.” However, unlike other major development banks like the World Bank or the Asian Development Bank, the AfDB offers limited space for meaningful engagement and participation of civil society organizations (CSOs), opting instead to organize a separate Civil Society Forum from 2018.
Despite this, CSOs and community representatives joined the meetings in Nairobi, determined to have their voices heard and their messages known.
Starting on the Sidelines…
My experience of the AfDB Annual Meetings began on the sidelines with a two-day parallel workshop from May 27-28, organized by members of the AfDB CSO Working Group, including Lumière Synergie pour le Développement (LSD), the Bank Information Center (BIC), Accountability Counsel (AC), Christian Aid, and the ACCESS Coalition. During these two days, around 40 CSO and community representatives gathered to discuss issues related to the AfDB, strategize joint advocacy for engaging with board and management, and coordinate messages for the Annual Meetings.
The workshop offered an open space to discuss the updated Integrated Safeguards Systems (ISS) and other policies, and to tackle questions on CSO engagement at the Annual Meetings. Bank representatives present reaffirmed their commitment to engage with civil society and valued CSO work in realizing the bank’s goals inclusively and equitably. Had things gone differently, this would have been a great prologue to further engagement with the bank.
Barred at the Gates…
The Annual Meetings officially kicked off on Wednesday, May 29. A group of us, CSO leaders and community representatives, went together wearing matching t-shirts for the occasion. We picked up our badges and went through security without a hitch.
Excitement buzzed in the air as we navigated through the white tents where attendees watched the opening ceremony transmission, crossed the flagged-up avenue leading to the Supreme Court, and marveled like tourists at the waterworks, the KICC tower, and the sheer number of people.
But our enthusiasm was short-lived. Security guards in pristine uniforms suddenly accosted us. They scrutinized our t-shirts—mine was yellow with the slogan “We go for renewables,” while others wore white polos saying “We need our forum back.” They accused us of leading an unlawful protest and threatened to call ‘trucks’ on us unless we left. Despite my extensive experience in civil society and anti-corruption work, I never anticipated that advocating for CSO space and renewables in a bank official meeting would be seen as a security threat.
Yet there we were, stripped of our badges and manhandled out of the venue like criminals. One security guard barked at us, “Get out. You’re not allowed here.”
Ending on the Sidelines…
Before this incident, colleagues and partners had warned me about the challenges of engaging with the AfDB. I expected overly technical meetings and double talk, not on-the-ground retaliation. Our crime? Advocating for renewable energy and the return of our forum.
Some executive directors and bank officials we were supposed to meet with later joined us at the hotel instead. However, without our badges, we were barred from further participation in the events. Reports from colleagues who attended the bank’s side event on CSO engagement on May 31st also highlighted the lack of actual CSO voices, further cementing the dissonance between the bank’s official stance on enhancing CSO engagement and its practice.
This year’s convenings marked the 59th Annual Meeting of the African Development Bank and the 50th Meeting of the Board of Governors of the African Development Fund, under the theme “Africa’s Transformation, African Development Bank Group, and Reform of the Global Financial Architecture.” Yet, critical reforms to allow safe and meaningful civic and community participation and feedback remain slow to come.
In a short video message addressed to the AfDB, Aly Marie Sagne, Executive Director at Lumière Synergie pour le Développement (LSD) and one of the civic leaders expelled on May 29, urged the bank to uphold its zero-tolerance for retaliation principles and foster meaningful civic engagement by reintegrating the CSO Forum with the Annual Meetings.
In the end, I can’t say I gained much insight into the AfDB Annual Meetings, having been forcefully relegated to the margins as undesirables and potential troublemakers. Yet, I value the experience as it reinforced why we must continue to come together and speak up to shape better outcomes in the future. It is essential to ensure that civil society and the people we represent are not perpetually left on the outside, looking in.
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Civil society groups were just expelled from the #AfDBAM2024 venue, simply for wearing t-shirts & bringing placards.@AfDB_Group, is this the #Africa you want?✊We will not be silenced. And the more we’ll be ignored & censored, the louder we’ll speak. pic.twitter.com/fFgT0nWYX0— Coalition for Human Rights in Development 🌎 (@RightsinDevt) May 29, 2024