The AFD Organization
AFD is wholly owned by the French State. It is a public entity dedicated to activities of an industrial and commercial nature, and operates under the aegis of the French Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the Ministry of Finance and the Ministry of Overseas Territories. AFD is endowed with €400 million, and manages a loan portfolio worth more than €10.44 billion as of the end of 2007.
As a bank and a specialised finance institution, AFD is licensed and regulated by the French Banking Authority and conforms to national and international banking regulations and ratios. AFD’s annual accounts are verified by two independent auditors and submitted for inspection by the French Banking Commission and General Accounting Office, as well as to the Financial Markets Authority (AMF). Both Standard & Poors and Fitch’s credit rating agencies rate AFD’s credit and bonds AAA, the highest credit rating available.
AFD’s dual status as a development bank and specialised financial institution underpins its ability to finance development projects for both social and economic profit. AFD is central to the implementation of France’s foreign and overseas development assistance policies and goals.
Men and Women Working for Development
AFD has 61 agencies and offices worldwide, including 9 in the French Overseas Territories. At the end of 2007, AFD, together with its subsidiary Proparco, employed 1306 people at the end of 2007, including 541 in-country staff. In addition, it supplied 374 trained staff to the French Overseas Territories’ central banks and supplied 33 consultants to developing countries.
The majority of employees and agents work in or for Africa, followed by the French Overseas Territories, Mediterranean Basin, the Middle East, and Asia.
Specific Talents and Abilities
AFD’s recruiting policy focuses on finding and integrating candidates who have specific technical and strategic abilities, particularly in the areas of education, health, law and financial engineering. AFD hires experienced staff, but also offers numerous volunteer opportunities to young graduates for technical assistance positions in foreign country offices. Its two-year training programme, known as the “Vivier” programme, allows young graduates to work in several different departments at headquarters in Paris and abroad following a bespoke programme that lasts several months.
In addition to its graduates programme, continuing education for full-time staff is a priority for AFD’s Human Resources department. All employees benefit from periodic training sessions, as well as from a shared knowledge base and tool-set that facilitates solving development problems and working in foreign environments and with local people.
International Partnership
About thirty agents of the AFD are on assignment to national and international institutions such as :
- The United Nations Development program (UNDP),
- the World Bank, the International Monetary fund (IMF),
- the german cooperation (KFW),
- the European Investment Bank (EIB),
- the Asian Development Bank (ADB).
These partnerships contribute to an exchange of experience and knowledge that furthers mutual understanding between key players in international development.
Notes and Documents
AFD Organizational Chart (February 2009)
Jean-Michel Severino Curriculum Vitae