The unseemly controversy swirling around the recruitment of the next president of the African Development Bank (AfDB) has exposed glaring weaknesses in our economic diplomacy that need to be fixed urgently.
A fortnight ago, AfDB CFO Swazi Tshabalala resigned immediately from her post at the continental development institution. This was to avoid conflict of interest while she mounts a campaign to succeed Akinwumi Adesina, the Nigerian who has headed the bank for two decades.
Tshabalala, who has held senior jobs in SA’s public and private sector, came second in interviews by finance ministers of the Southern African Development Community (Sadc). Still, her government tossed her name in the hat, rattling the cages of the regional body.
It is not uncommon for a region to have various countries raising their hands for any of the Tiffany posts. However, it is undesirable to then run smear campaigns against rival candidates.
Pretoria appears to have been caught off guard despite knowing that Adesina is not returning to the job. Its side deal with Abuja was clearly insufficient.
The government ought to have lobbied governments in the region and across the continent after identifying Tshabalala as its choice. It is not too late. Tshabalala is a formidable candidate.
What is concerning, however, is that this is not the first clumsy handling of such matters. Two years ago, Pretoria backed Mthunzi Mdwaba as director-general for the International Labour Organisation. Later, the government withdrew its support for him, sounding a death knell to his candidacy.
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