African Development Bank Appoints Professor Kevin Chika Urama Chief Economist and Vice President for Economic Governance and Knowledge Management | African Development Bank

The African Development Bank has appointed Professor Kevin Chika Urama as Chief Economist and Vice President for the Bank’s Economic Governance and Knowledge Management complex. The appointment will take effect on 1 April 2023.

An internationally recognized development economist, Urama is a British national and has over 30 years of African and global experience in economic policy and knowledge management. Prior to this appointment, he was acting chief economist and vice president at the African Development Bank. He is also Senior Director of the bank’s African Development Institute, a position he has held since October 2018.

As Acting Vice President, under the leadership of Bank President Akinwumi Adesina, Urama introduced innovative flagship knowledge products, including macroeconomic performance and country-focused reports, which significantly increased the impact of the institution’s annual Africa Economic Outlook report.

Prior to joining the African Development Bank, Urama held a variety of leadership positions in academia, international organizations and the private sector. He was the inaugural Managing Director of the Quantum Global Research Laboratory in Zug, Switzerland; Executive Director of the African Technology Policy Studies Network in Nairobi, Kenya; and lecturer at the University of Nigeria.

Urama holds a PhD in Land Economy from the University of Cambridge, UK, an MPhil in Land Economy from Cambridge University, and a Bachelor’s and Master of Science in Agricultural Economics from the University of Nigeria.

Urama has published numerous articles in various scientific journals and media, and has served on many international and intergovernmental scientific panels.

Commenting on his appointment, Urama said: “I would like to thank the President of the African Development Bank Group, Dr. Adesina, for his appointment as Chief Economist and Vice President for Economic Governance and Knowledge Management complex at the African Development Bank Group. I am confident that together with the great teams in the Vice Presidency and within the Bank Group, we will build on the institution’s role as a leading provider of knowledge solutions to drive inclusive growth and sustainable development in Africa.”

Dr. Akinwumi A. Adesina said, “I am delighted to appoint Professor Kevin Chika Urama as Chief Economist and Vice President for Economic Governance and Knowledge Management. Professor Urama is a respected global development economist and business leader with extensive global experience in economic policy and knowledge management. He will lead the team and carry out the bank’s mandate in economic research, economic governance and knowledge management.”