Prime Minister Justin Nsengiyumva joined African leaders, policymakers, diplomats and development partners in Brazzaville, Republic of Congo, for the Africa Liberation Day celebration that kicked off the 2026 Annual Meetings of the African Development Bank Group (AfDB) on Monday, May 25.
Themed “Assuring Sustainable Water Availability and Safe Sanitation Systems to Achieve Agenda 2063,” the event forms part of the AfDB meetings running until May 29, bringing together more than 3,000 delegates from the bank’s member countries.
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In his remarks during the event, President of the Republic of Congo, Denis Sassou Nguesso, paid tribute to African liberation heroes and called for stronger continental unity, economic integration and investment in Africa’s future.
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Reflecting on Africa’s liberation journey, Nguesso said the continent’s independence was built on the sacrifices of leaders and freedom fighters who dedicated their lives to justice and sovereignty.
“Africa Day, celebrated every year, honours the struggles led by the founding fathers of African independence, who sacrificed their blood and risked their lives for the liberation of Africa,” he said.
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He paid tribute to several Pan-African figures, including Patrice Lumumba, Nelson Mandela, Kwame Nkrumah and Amílcar Cabral, describing them as heroes whose legacy continues to shape the continent.
The Congolese leader added that Africa should be central to the future of the global economy and climate resilience, saying the continent’s natural resources, young population and environmental assets place it at the centre of future development.
“Without doubt, Africa will be the key to unlocking humanity’s future, we just need to accelerate implementation of the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA), which represents the embodiment of economic Pan-Africanism and strengthen intra-African connectivity through infrastructure, energy access and the free movement of people and goods,” he said.
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AfDB President Sidi Ould Tah said Africa’s development journey must increasingly be driven by African-led solutions and stronger continental institutions.
“At the time of the creation of the African Union, many thought Africa was too poor to finance its own development, too fragmented to build strong continental institutions, and too dependent to define its own destiny. But African leaders chose agency over dependence.”
Tah said that Africa’s future depends on deeper integration, cooperation and collective ownership of development priorities, noting that no African country can fully succeed while acting in isolation.
“In a world marked by geopolitical tensions, economic fragmentation and identity crises, Africa must continue to champion cooperation, stability and shared prosperity,” he said.
He also linked this year’s Africa Day theme on sustainable water access and sanitation to broader questions of dignity, climate resilience and economic transformation.
“No continent can fully transform itself if millions of women and children still spend hours every day searching for water, water security is directly tied to public health, food systems, energy access and long-term stability,” he said.
The AfDB boss also described Africa not as a continent defined by deficits, but as one undergoing profound transformation driven by economic ambition, regional integration and a growing determination to shape its own future.
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“Africa today is showing a new ambition, an economic ambition, a deeper integration and greater control over its destiny,” he said.
AfDB meetings
This year’s AfDB Annual Meetings are being held amid growing concerns over shrinking global development financing, rising borrowing costs and widening infrastructure and climate financing gaps across the continent.
One of the key discussions expected in Brazzaville is the implementation of the New African Financial Architecture for Development (NAFAD), an initiative aimed at unlocking the continent’s domestic capital, including an estimated $4 trillion held in pension funds and sovereign wealth funds across the continent.
The annual meetings will also see the launch of the 2026 edition of the African Economic Outlook report, one of Africa’s most influential economic publications used by governments, investors and international financial institutions to assess the continent’s economic prospects.