Uganda’s Alex Mubiru appointed Acting Director General of African Development Bank

Ugandan economist Dr Alex Mubiru has been appointed Acting Director General of the African Development Bank Group (ADB) effective December 17, 2021.

Mubiru’s appointment was confirmed by the banking group in a statement released on December 17, 2021.

According to ADB, Mubiru will retain this position until further notice. He replaces Yacine Fal, who has now been deployed as Acting Vice President for Regional Development, Integration and Business Delivery.

Commenting on his appointment, Dr. Mubiru thanked ADB President, Dr. Akinwumi Adesina for the  confidence and trust in him to serve in the new role. He expressed his willingness to drive ADB’s growth strategy.

“We have a great and effective team in the Office of the President and we have been very fortunate to have Ms. Yacine Fal as our Director General. I will do my best to uphold the leadership and the high standard she has set and ensure smooth and effective coordination of the work and activities of the Cabinet Office of the President during her call to duty to serve the bank in another capacity as Acting Vice President for Regional Development, Integration and Business Delivery,” Mubiru said.

Adesina described Mubiru as a a well-rounded professional with the maturity and experience suitable for the role.

“He has deep institutional knowledge, and a track record of performance. His experience as part of the senior leadership team in the Cabinet Office of the President will allow him to effectively support the President and the Office of the President during this transition period, as the Director General of the Cabinet Office of the President,” Adesina remarked.

In addition to his role as Acting Director General, ADB confirmed that the Ugandan economist will retain his position as Director (Strategy and Delivery) in the Office of the President.

It’s worth noting that Alex Mubiru is a son to Joseph Mubiru, the former Bank of Uganda’s governor who disappeared during the wave of arrests, killings and disappearances of 1972 during then president Idi Amin’s regime.

Dr. Alex Mubiru has been serving at ADB since 2009 when he joined the banking group as a Principal Research Economist. He then served as Principal Country Economist, Tanzania Country Office (2010-2012) and later as Lead Strategy Advisor, Strategy and Operations Policy Department (2012-2014) as part of the core group that coordinated the development of the Bank’s 2013-2022 Ten-Year Strategy.

Between 2013 and 2017, Mubiru served as Task Manager for the development of the Bank’s Private Sector Strategy before being appointed Manager, Resource Mobilization Department (2014-2018).

In June 2018, ADB President Dr. Adesina appointed him as Country Manager, Tanzania Country Office, where he managed a portfolio of more than $2.3 billion. He was appointed as Director (Strategy and Delivery) in the office of the president in November 2020.

Dr. Mubiru holds a Bachelor of Arts (cum laude) in Philosophy, Political Science and Economics from Macalester College, USA (1992); a Master's in Public Affairs (1996) and a PhD in Public Affairs (2000) both from Princeton University, USA.