( AfDB ) - The African Development Bank is pleased to announce the appointment of Mr. Jacques Edjangue as Acting Vice President, People and Talent Management Complex, effective 20th June 2022.

Edjangue, a Cameroonian national, is currently Acting Director of the Human Resources Management Department, and also Director of the Language Services Department. A thought leader, Jacques has broad and diverse experience within the African Development Bank.

As Director of the Language Services Department, he transformed and enhanced the quality of its services by introducing a series of reforms and innovations. These include leveraging and optimizing information technology for language services, setting up cutting-edge technology in translation services, setting up a workflow for interpretation services, and modernizing the language services using artificial intelligence and neural networks.

As Acting Director of the Human Resources Management Department, a function he has occupied since June 2020, Edjangue has overseen the design and implementation of a series of initiatives and major landmark reforms that include a comprehensive review of Staff Regulations and Staff Rules and a review of the Performance Management Framework.

Before joining the Bank, Edjangue headed the Language and Conference Section at the International Panel of Eminent Personalities Secretariat, set up by the African Union Assembly of Heads of State and Government. He also served as a personal Interpreter to Sir Ketumile Masire, former President of Botswana and Facilitator of the Democratic Republic of the Congo peace process. In 2000, he was appointed Deputy Director and Deputy Permanent Representative at the International Organization of the Francophonie (OIF). In this capacity, he represented the OIF at the United Nations Economic Commission for Africa and the African Union in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia.

Edjangue holds a Master’s degree in Business Administration from Colorado State University, USA; a Master’s degree in Interpretation and a Master’s degree in Translation from the University of Buea, Cameroon; a Maîtrise in Afro-American Literature from the University of Yaounde, Cameroon; a Literature Certificate from the University of East Anglia, United Kingdom and a Leadership and Negotiation Certificate from Harvard University, USA.

Commenting on his appointment, Edjangue said: “I would like to thank President Adesina for this appointment which allows me to further provide leadership and direction to the re-engineering, management and implementation of the Bank’s human resources institutional development strategies and priorities.”

The President of the African Development Bank Group, Dr. Akinwumi Adesina, said: “The new Vice Presidency for People and Talent Management was created to give greater priority and visibility to people, skills and talent management, and to further deepen staff engagement and overall work experience of staff and all others working at the Bank. I am pleased to appoint Jacques as the Acting Vice President of the People and Talent Management Complex. Over the past two years, while he had been in charge of the Human Resources Department, Jacques has displayed solid knowledge and hands-on experience in human resources and people management. He will help provide the leadership needed to orient this new Vice Presidency, while an international search is on for a substantive Vice President, and until the substantive Vice President for the new People and Talent Management Complex is appointed.”