KEY POINTS
- African Development Bank scored 98.8 out of 100 in the 2026 Aid Transparency Index.
- The bank retained its top position for the third consecutive ranking.
- The Inter-American Development Bank and World Bank’s International Development Association jointly ranked second with 97.1 points.
- AfDB says transparency is central to accountability and delivery of Africa’s development priorities.
MAIN STORY
The African Development Bank (AfDB) has retained its position as the world’s most transparent major development institution for the third consecutive time, scoring 98.8 out of 100 in the 2026 Aid Transparency Index.
The bank announced this in a statement released on Wednesday in Abuja, following the publication of the biennial ranking in London by Publish What You Fund, an organisation that assesses transparency in development financing.
The 2026 index evaluated 33 development institutions, with the Inter-American Development Bank and the World Bank’s International Development Association jointly taking second place with 97.1 points each.
AfDB’s leading position was attributed to its publication of comprehensive, high-quality and timely open data covering its public sector activities and financial flows.
The bank also maintained its 2024 score despite changes in leadership, management and strategic direction, which it said reflected the integration of transparency into its institutional operations.
Mr Gary Forster, Chief Executive Officer of Publish What You Fund, said the bank’s continued performance demonstrated its commitment to openness and accountability.
He also commended improvements to the bank’s website and data dashboards, noting that the changes had made development information more accessible and useful to stakeholders.
AfDB President, Dr Sidi Ould Tah, said transparency was essential to delivering Africa’s development priorities, building public trust and strengthening accountability.
“Transparency is currency. It enables us to deliver the transformation that Africa needs. It builds trust and improves information.” – Sidi Ould Tah, President, African Development Bank.
Tah said the bank’s transparency efforts also covered Mission 300, its partnership with the World Bank to connect 300 million Africans to electricity by 2030.
According to him, the programme’s results are published and updated quarterly through the Mission 300 dashboard, allowing stakeholders to track progress.
THE ISSUES
The ranking highlights the importance of public access to information about how development institutions manage funds and implement projects.
For African countries that depend on development financing, accessible and timely data can help governments, citizens and other stakeholders monitor funding flows and assess whether resources are being used to deliver intended outcomes.
The AfDB’s performance also places attention on the role of transparency in strengthening confidence in development institutions, particularly as they finance major infrastructure and social development programmes across the continent.
WHAT’S NEXT
The bank says it will continue publishing development information and financial data to strengthen public access, accountability and confidence in development financing.
Its quarterly updates on the Mission 300 dashboard provide one example of how it intends to make programme progress accessible to stakeholders.
BOTTOM LINE
AfDB’s 98.8-point score in the 2026 Aid Transparency Index keeps it at the top of the ranking for the third consecutive time, reinforcing the importance of open data and accountability in development financing across Africa.
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