Dr. Sidi Ould Tah

Dr. Sidi Ould Tah was elected the ninth president of the African Development Bank Group on 29 May 2025 with a historic mandate from shareholders, securing more than 76 percent of the vote, the highest first-term margin in the Bank’s history. His election reflects strong shareholder confidence in his proven ability to deliver bold reforms and measurable impact for Africa’s development based on his 40+ years career in various banking, economist and ministerial roles in Africa and the global south.

Prior to this election, Dr. Ould Tah served as President of the Arab Bank for Economic Development in Africa (BADEA) for a decade (2015–2025). During this period, he led a broad transformation of the institution, repositioning it from an unrated regional player into one of Africa’s highest-rated multilateral development banks. Under his leadership, BADEA achieved prestigious AAA/Aa1/AA+ credit ratings, placing it among the most trusted institutions on the continent. The bank’s total assets nearly doubled, even as it maintained exceptional asset quality and slashed its non-performing loan ratio from 11 percent to just 0.4 percent, one of the lowest among African development finance institutions.

One of Dr. Ould Tah’s hallmark achievements at BADEA was launching the institution’s successful entry into international capital markets through two successive public bond issuances.

He also introduced BADEA’s first 10-year strategic framework, known as BADEA 2030, and established a visionary 50-year development roadmap, BADEA 2074. His forward-thinking leadership, digital transformation of the bank’s operations, and positioning sustainability at the heart of the bank’s financing model earned multiple international certifications for excellence in environmental, social, and governance practices.

Throughout his career, Dr. Ould Tah also demonstrated exceptional crisis leadership. When political instability and conflict erupted in Sudan between 2019 and 2023, at the same time of the COVID-19 pandemic crisis, he oversaw the expedited relocation of BADEA’s headquarters from Khartoum to Riyadh. Despite the dual shocks, the bank seamlessly maintained full operational continuity, safeguarded all staff and their families, and remarkably, achieved a 357 percent increase in annual disbursements during this challenging period. His calm yet decisive leadership during these crises further cemented his reputation as a capable and trusted development finance executive.

Before joining BADEA, Dr. Ould Tah served as Mauritania’s Minister of Economy and Finance and Minister of Economic Affairs and Development from 2008 to 2015. In this role, he helped shape national development plans that attracted significant external investment and drove major economic reforms. He also served as Governor for Mauritania on the boards of several international financial institutions, including the African Development Bank, the World Bank, the Islamic Development Bank, and over ten Arab and regional development institutions. He also actively served as a board member of leading African development finance institutions such as Afreximbank and the Trade and Development Bank.

Dr. Ould Tah holds a PhD in Economics from the University of Nice Sophia Antipolis in France and a Master’s in Economics from the University of Nouakchott in Mauritania. He has also completed executive education programs at the Harvard Institute for International Development, the Swiss Finance Institute, and the London Business School. Fluent in Arabic, French, and English, with working knowledge of Portuguese and Spanish, Dr. Ould Tah has leveraged his linguistic fluency and diplomatic agility to deepen South-South cooperation and forge high-level partnerships across Africa, the Gulf, and Europe.

His contributions to development have been widely recognized with numerous national honors, including being named a Knight of the National Order of Merit in Mauritania and receiving Grand Officer distinctions from Burkina Faso, Niger, Senegal, and several other African nations.

Dr. Sidi Ould Tah’s career spans the full spectrum of Africa’s development finance landscape, both as a policymaker managing public resources and as a financier crafting continental investment solutions. His long-standing engagement with global donors, rating agencies, and development partners has further positioned him as a trusted interlocutor at the highest levels of international finance.

His leadership at the helm of the African Development Bank Group marks a new era for the institution, anchored in strategic vision, operational excellence, and an unwavering commitment to Africa’s transformation.