​Cotonou, Benin, April 30, 2024-Makhtar Diop, Managing Director of the International Finance Corporation (IFC), will visit Benin from May 1st to 3rd to meet with senior government officials and business leaders to underscore IFC's commitment to scaling its support for the country's private sector growth strategy.

During his first official visit to Benin as IFC Managing Director, Mr. Diop will focus his discussions on how Benin can create quality jobs, grow its economy, and boost shared prosperity by enabling private sector-led expansion in its agribusiness, industrial, and tourism sectors and by better leveraging its strategic location as a transit point into West Africa.

His engagements will include meetings with His Excellency President of Benin, Patrice Talon; Senior Minister for Economy and Finance, Romuald Wadagni; other senior government officials; key business leaders in the agribusiness sector; and women entrepreneurs to discuss how IFC can amplify its financial and advisory support to help the government and business owners come closer to their goals around economic growth, job creation, and sustainability.

Mr. Diop will also conduct site visits with local authorities and engage with young entrepreneurs and innovators from Sèmè City to discuss the growth potential of the startup ecosystem in Benin.

A stronger private sector will help Benin capitalize on its current healthy growth trajectory, where the country recorded GDP growth of 6.4% in 2023 and is maintaining moderate levels of inflation despite regional and global uncertainties.

IFC is ramping up its engagement in Benin to contribute to the country's inclusive growth, job creation, and local value creation by promoting the formalization and industrialization of the Beninese economy. IFC has built a strong pipeline of projects with potential commitments in key sectors for growth, such as agribusiness, manufacturing, infrastructure, cultural and creative industries, and financial markets.

WHO: Makhtar Diop, Managing Director, IFC - @Diop_IFC
WHEN: Wednesday, May 1, 2024
WHERE: Cotonou, Benin

For media requests, please contact: Abdoul Maiga | [email protected] | + 1 202 967 8969

About IFC
IFC - a member of the World Bank Group - is the largest global development institution focused on the private sector in emerging markets. We work in more than 100 countries, using our capital, expertise, and influence to create markets and opportunities in developing countries. In fiscal year 2023, IFC committed a record $43.7 billion to private companies and financial institutions in developing countries, leveraging the power of the private sector to end extreme poverty and boost shared prosperity as economies grapple with the impacts of global compounding crises. For more information, visit www.ifc.org.

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Makhtar Diop

Makhtar Diop is IFC's Managing Director. He assumed this position on March 1, 2021. Prior to this appointment, he was the World Bank's Vice President for Infrastructure, where he led the Bank's global efforts to build sustainable infrastructure in developing and emerging economies. In this role, he oversaw the Bank's critical work in energy, transport, digital infrastructure, and public-private partnerships.

Prior to this, Mr. Diop served for six years as the World Bank's Vice President for Africa, where he oversaw the delivery of a record-breaking USD$70 billion to Sub-Saharan Africa to help tackle development challenges such as increasing access to energy; boosting women's and youth's economic empowerment; and promoting an enabling environment for more innovation and technology adoption. A passionate advocate for Africa's right to clean and affordable electricity, he also called for greater investment in renewable energy and pushed for stronger regional interconnectivity in the power and transport sectors. He previously served as World Bank Director for Finance, Private Sector & Infrastructure in the Latin America and the Caribbean Region; Country Director for Brazil, where he helped finance major infrastructure work; and Country Director for Kenya, Eritrea, and Somalia.

Mr. Diop brings to the post a deep level of experience and understanding of development challenges and a firm grasp of the public/private sector interface. His main priorities will be to mobilize investments in the poorest and most fragile countries and create the conditions for a resilient, inclusive, and sustainable recovery. In addition to his international organization experience, Mr. Diop, an economist by training who started his career in the banking industry before joining the IMF and later the World Bank, has extensive private sector experience. He has also held government positions, most notably as Minister of Economy and Finance of Senegal, where he played a key role in instituting structural reforms that helped build a strong foundation for Senegal's growth in the late 1980s.

A recognized opinion leader in the economic and social development field, Makhtar Diop has been named one of the 100 most influential Africans in the world. In 2015, he received the prestigious Regents' Lectureship Award from the University of California, Berkeley.

Mr. Diop holds degrees in economics from the Universities of Warwick and Nottingham in England.

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