Project cycle

The African Development Bank uses a precise project development cycle. It is made up of six stages, three of which are considered part of preparation, the other three part of execution.

The first stage is project identification. Country/project managers and the Bank agree on a country strategy and identify priorities and projects to this end.

The second stage is preparation. The country is responsible for examining the technical, economic, social, and environmental aspects of the project, with the support of the Bank.

Next comes the evaluation. A team from the Bank reviews the documents prepared in the first two stages and collates them into an evaluation report.

If the project proves viable, an appraisal report is submitted for approval.

Next stage is final project negotiation and formal approval by the Board of Directors. Negotiation covers the measures to be taken to ensure the project's success, and which will be incorporated into the legal agreement between the Bank and the recipient.

Then comes project implementation, under the responsibility of the country or recipient.

The project development cycle is completed by a retrospective evaluation, in which a Bank team conducts an audit comparing the initial mandate with the achievement of the defined objectives. The report produced enables the Bank to draw on the lessons learned to improve its future performance.

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