Your Excellency, the Prime Minister of the Republic of Guinea Bissau, Honourable Cabinet Ministers present, Honourable Ministers and Governors of the IMF and World Bank Group, Your Excellency, President of the African Development Bank, Your Excellency, President of the ECOWAS Commission, Representatives of Multilateral and Financial Development Banks, Executive Directors of the African Development Bank, IMF and World Bank Group, Delegates from the Private Sector across the African Continent, Senior Government Officials and Security Chiefs, Staff of the IMF and World Bank Group, Distinguished Guests, Ladies and Gentlemen,

It is with great pleasure and honour that I welcome all the esteemed African Governors and Delegates here. Your presence in the Smiling Coast of Africa powerfully reflects our collective commitment to advancing Africa’s development goals and strengthening collaboration on the continent. Hosting this 2026 African Caucus Meeting marks a significant gesture in our ongoing partnership and underlines the importance of collaboration in achieving sustainable development across Africa. On behalf of the Government and People of The Gambia, I convey sincere gratitude to the Governors and leadership of the IMF and World Bank Group for the honour of hosting this important Meeting.

Your Excellencies, Ladies and Gentlemen, Africa’s paradox lingers on as a continent uniquely endowed with rich human capital, vast natural resources, and great innovation potential. The continent proudly boasts of a young and vibrant population whose creativity offers immense promise for the future. Yet, we continue to face formidable challenges arising from multiple dimensions of life. Prominently, we continue to battle spillover effects of geopolitical tensions, climate change vulnerabilities, infrastructure deficits, and high financing gaps, among other development hurdles.

The theme of this year’s Caucus Meeting, “Transforming Africa’s Economies through Investment, Innovation, and Inclusion,” cannot better resonate with Africa’s transformation agenda. With a focus on, Unlocking Financing to Drive Africa’s Structural Transformation for Inclusive Growth” and “Leveraging Africa’s Natural Resource Endowments for Quality Jobs and Inclusive Growth”, the theme speaks directly to our current realities and ongoing efforts to build a more prosperous Africa. This Meeting has come at a time of puzzling global uncertainties and rising geo-political tensions. The theme thus hammers home the need for joint diagnostic discussions on global challenges to offer solutions through Investment, Innovation, and Inclusion. Governments in Africa cannot achieve this alone; it requires all hands-on-desk to do so.

This three-day event provides an opportune moment and platform to bring together relevant key pillars of Government, on one hand, and private sector players, academics, and various experts, on the other. It is a rare opportunity to insightfully deliberate on shared African priorities and reaffirm Africa’s collective commitment to accelerating economic transformation through investment, innovation, and inclusion. The Gambia Government will continue to partner with the IMF, World Bank Group, and other development partners, as we address our challenges, especially unemployment, poverty, and climate change. Looking ahead, I am confident that our collaboration will continue to yield positive results and, surely, working together, we will build a resilient and inclusive Africa that leaves no one behind.

The outcome of this Meeting should, therefore, serve the useful purpose of addressing the persistent and emerging issues affecting Member States. That way, it will strengthen our coordination efforts, bind us closer to our shared vision, and ease the task of achieving our development goals. With the diverse areas of competence of the delegates and guests, I am hopeful that, through the deliberations, the Caucus will acquire valuable insights and generate key recommendations to shape the economic future of our continent and deepen our engagements.

Your Excellencies, Ladies and Gentlemen, While we commend our development partners for their longstanding engagement in Africa, including their support for macroeconomic stability and capacity development, much work needs to be done to boost trade and the development of regional infrastructure, particularly in the areas of roads, energy, and digital connectivity. With regret, Africa continues to be the region with the highest infrastructure gap, which is hindering our sustainable advancement endeavours.

Similarly, the Africa Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) vision is not attainable without the proper platforms and instruments of trade facilitation. In particular, easy access to letters of credit, corresponding banking relations, an efficient African payment system, and access to guarantees still remain elusive objectives. As we reaffirm our commitment to strengthening domestic revenue mobilisation, improving public financial management, deepening domestic capital markets, we call on the IMF and World Bank Group to support ongoing efforts by African countries to broaden tax bases, rationalise tax expenditures, modernise tax systems, and enhance tax administration by leveraging appropriate digitalisation tools.

Furthermore, we call on our bilateral and multilateral partners to strengthen global tax cooperation to combat illicit financial flows from Africa. I assure you of my government's staunch commitment to championing the agenda of Transforming Africa’s Economies through Investment, Innovation, and Inclusion. This is why, for the past nine years, my government has been investing heavily in road and energy infrastructure to bridge the gap between rural and urban settings. In the same way, there are corresponding investments in the social sectors of health, education, and skills development. Combined, these attract the largest portion of our budget. The goal is to prepare our youth for the job market of the future and to ably navigate unforeseen challenges.

I express special appreciation and thanks to the organising team led by the Ministry of Finance and our entire government machinery for their efforts and dedication to service. Allow me, once again, to extend heartfelt appreciation to the IMF, World Bank Group, and all other development partners present for their invaluable support to the Member States. We pledge to continue working together to create a brighter and more prosperous future for The Gambia and the entire African continent.

Distinguished Guests, During your stay in The Gambia, I encourage you to explore and experience the rich culture, historical places, and the renowned hospitality that make our country unique. We hope you will not only leave with the success of this Meeting, but also long-lasting memories of the Smiling Coast of Africa. I wish you all a successful and productive 2026 Caucus Meeting. May God continue to bless Africa. Thank you.