AfDB Explores Korea’s Economic Transformation for Lessons on Africa’s Growth

Ould Tah and his delegation met GKEDC Executive Director Dr Dong Soo Kang before touring the centre’s exhibition on Korea’s post-war development history.

African Development Bank Group President Dr Sidi Ould Tah visited the Korea Development Institute's Global Knowledge Exchange and Development Centre (GKEDC) in Seoul to explore how Korea's economic transformation could inform Africa's development choices. The discussions focused on the policies, institutions, investments and skills behind that transformation, with attention to how African countries could adapt relevant experience to their own priorities.

The visit formed part of Ould Tah's first official trip to the Republic of Korea as Bank Group President, during which he co-hosted the eighth Korea-Africa Economic Cooperation (KOAFEC) Ministerial Conference. The conference also marked the partnership's 20th anniversary, giving the trip a broader setting for discussions about how economic cooperation and knowledge sharing could support Africa's ambitions.

Understanding What Made Korea's Transformation Possible

Ould Tah and his delegation met GKEDC Executive Director Dr Dong Soo Kang before touring the centre's exhibition on Korea's post-war development history. The exhibition traces the country's transition from a war-devastated economy dependent on aid to a diversified industrial power and donor country within the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development.

Korea emerged from decades of colonial rule and the destruction of the Korean War facing widespread poverty, limited productive capacity and severe development constraints. Its subsequent expansion of education and skills, technological capabilities and industrial production offered a basis for examining how countries build the capacity to sustain economic progress over generations.

For Ould Tah, the value of that history lies in understanding the decisions and capabilities that made change possible, including their relevance to African countries seeking higher productivity and more productive employment. He emphasised Africa's responsibility to shape its own development path by harnessing its people, institutions, technologies and production capacity to support structural transformation.

Connecting Knowledge Exchange With Everyday Priorities

Discussions identified artificial intelligence, digital transformation, agriculture, food security, health and education as potential areas for deeper Korea-Africa knowledge cooperation. Youth employment and the jobs of the future also featured, connecting the development of new capabilities with the need to create opportunities for Africa's growing population.

Agricultural productivity provided a practical example of how exchanges could address specific national needs, with Côte d'Ivoire's efforts to improve rice productivity illustrating the challenges that cooperation could help countries work through. The conversation placed food security alongside broader economic transformation, recognising the importance of applying knowledge to concrete production challenges.

The visit also reflected Ould Tah's Four Cardinal Points, particularly the priorities of harnessing Africa's demographic dividend and strengthening infrastructure, productive capacity and value addition. Those foundations connect investment in people and economic systems with the continent's ambitions for industrialisation and the creation of more productive economies.

Building Cooperation Around African Countries' Needs

GKEDC outlined its work as an international knowledge exchange platform, including policy training and cooperation programmes drawing on Korea's development experience. Kang offered to develop support around the Bank's priorities, saying: "Based on AfDB's specific needs, we stand ready to jointly design and deliver tailored capacity-building programmes." He expressed hope that the visit would strengthen a sustained partnership between the institutions.

For the Bank, access to practical experience, institutional knowledge and policy lessons complements development finance by helping countries adapt ideas to their own circumstances. Discussions also covered deeper engagement between GKEDC and the Bank's Asia External Representation Office, providing another connection for exchanges on the development priorities facing African countries.

The Bank plans to continue working with Korean institutions and development partners to turn relevant expertise into practical cooperation supporting inclusive, sustainable and resilient development across Africa. The emphasis on tailored programmes gives that cooperation a clear focus: helping countries develop the knowledge and capabilities needed to carry their own development choices into practice.